Explore

Illinois

Untangle Your Mind!

Sign up for our free newsletter and start your day with in-depth reporting on the latest topics in education.

Illinois Considers Lowering Scores Students Need to be Considered Proficient on State Exams

Samantha Smylie

Chicago Public Schools Once Again Puts 20 Closed Schools Up for Sale

Becky Vevea

Chicago Public Schools’ Black Student Success Plan Under Investigation Over DEI

Lauren Wagner

Close to $3 Billion in Relief Funds in Jeopardy as Ed Dept. Halts Payments

Linda Jacobson

New Study: Teacher Working Conditions Worsened After COVID — and Still Are

Lauren Wagner

Illinois Bill Aims to Add More Oversight of Homeschooling

Molly Parker & Beth Hundsdorfer

Chicago Black Student Success Plan Amid Backlash Against Race-Based Initiatives

Mila Koumpilova

Superintendent’s View: How My Illinois District Attracts, Retains Gen Z Teachers

Victoria Stockton

40% of Chicago Teachers Are Chronically Absent. Those Gaps Carry Real Costs

Chad Aldeman

Judge Rules Chicago School Board Can’t Interfere with CEO Martinez’s Powers

Reema Amin

Chicago School Board Fires CEO Pedro Martinez

Reema Amin

Mayor Johnson Announces 10 of 11 Appointees for New Chicago Board of Education

Reema Amin & Becky Vevea

CPS Official Promoted Lead-Reducing Invention for School Water, Listed on Patent

Cam Rodriguez & Jewél Jackson

Chicago Is Running Out of Money. Its Teachers Union Wants 9% Raises Anyway

Chad Aldeman

All Chicago Board of Education Members to Resign

Reema Amin

Chicago Public Schools Plan Aims to Get More Kids to Attend Neighborhood Schools

Reema Amin & Mila Koumpilova

Illinois Now Has Blueprint for K-12 Schools to Teach Dangers of Overdose

Dilpreet Raju

States Move to Correct Enrollment Discrimination After The 74’s Investigation

Jo Napolitano

Illinois Lawmaker Calls For Strengthening Protection For Homeschooled Children

Beth Hundsdorfer & Molly Parker

Illinois Switching to ACT Exams For State Assessments

Peter Hancock

Illinois Governor Signs Bill Creating New Department of Early Childhood

Peter Hancock

Thousands Of Illinois Youth At Risk of Losing Access to After-School Programs

Peter Hancock

Lawmakers Challenge Chicago School Board’s Choice Policy, Plans to Remove Police

Reema Amin & Samantha Smylie

Research Study: Perception of Neighborhood Safety Can Shape Infant and Maternal Outcomes

K.C. Compton

How 2 Exceptional Illinois Schools Are Propelling Academic Growth for Students

Chase Nordengren

Future of High School: Career Training Lessons from Chicago’s Suburbs

The 74

Credit Hours Are a Relic of the Past. How States Must Disrupt High School — Now

Russlynn Ali & Timothy F.C. Knowles

Open Invitation to Florida and Texas Teachers: Come to Illinois. We Trust You

Tony Sanders

From CA to MA, What Teachers Unions Have Been Doing in Statehouses Nationwide

Mike Antonucci

For Chicago Girls Confronting Violence, A School Solution for Reducing PTSD

Marianna McMurdock

This Rural Illinois District Curbed Learning Loss With Help From a Burmese Church

Asher Lehrer-Small

Controversial Gunshot Detectors on Minneapolis Schools, Cyber Attack Reveals

Mark Keierleber

Mental Health, Roofing & Job Training: Illinois ‘Just Transition’ Grants Launch

Kari Lydersen

In and Out of Class, These Top Teachers ‘Thrive Off Connections’ With Students

Linda Jacobson

When Gun Violence Ends Young Lives, These Men Prepare the Graves

Cara Anthony

From Parents to Paras: Illinois Program Brings Professional Training to Families

Megan McGibney

From Public Ed to Special Olympics: How 7 States Spend Money From Lottery Sales

Aine Givens

3 Misconceptions About Pandemic-Related Learning Loss

Sarah Cashdollar, Mariana Barragan Torres & Meg Bates

Swatting Hoax Targeting Schools ‘Absolutely’ Coordinated, But May Still Be Kids

Mark Keierleber

Reed: States Must Step in to Give Youngest Learners the Foundation to Succeed

Katie Reed

Study Shows Stronger Outcomes for English Learners with Early Access to Pre-K Programs

Leigh Giangreco

How School Can Best Prep Grads for Future Economy: Career Training in Green Jobs

Rachel Rosen

New Partnerships for Student & Teacher Mental Health in Illinois Schools

Carmen I. Ayala

Chicago’s New School Chief Has Long Record of Innovation in Texas

Beth Hawkins

COVID Saliva Tests Could Keep More Students in School, Experts Say

Greg Toppo

State Roundup: The Summer of Child Care Innovations

Elliot Haspel

Hoffman: By Easing Rules and Restrictions, States Can Give Districts the Flexibility They Need to Deliver Education in This Pandemic

Nathan Hoffman

Defying State Closure Mandates, Some Religious Private Schools Fight to Stay Open During Coronavirus Spread

Zoë Kirsch

Analysis: Chicago’s Teachers Union Agreed to Give Spending Control to Principals. Now, the Union Is Striking to Take It Away. That’s a Bad Move for Students

Marguerite Roza

Illinois Governor Grants Reprieve of State’s Popular Tax-Credit Scholarship Program, but Political Fight Puts Dent in Donations Even as Applications Surge

Josh Sanburn

Jochim & Lavery: Can Teachers Bridge the Divide Between Unions and Charter Schools? Strikes in Chicago and L.A. Are Test Cases

Ashley Jochim & Lesley Lavery

Analysis: Illinois Set Ambitious Goals for Student Outcomes Under ESSA That Just Won’t Work. Here’s Why — and How States Can Do Better

Elliot Regenstein, Ben Boer & Paul Zavitkovsky

Chicago Heads Toward First Teacher Strike in History of Charter Schools

David Cantor