"A victory for students, communities and our profession"

CTU members voted 79.1 percent to accept the strike-won contract, which reportedly was the highest approval rating for any contract in the  CTU’s history. Of the 20,765 valid ballots submitted, 16,428 were for the new agreement and 4,337 were against it. More than 80 percent of CTU members voted on the contract.

CTU President Karen Lewis hailed the vote:

“This shows overwhelming recognition by our members that this contract represents a victory for students, communities and our profession. Our members are coming out of this with an even greater appreciation for the continued fight for public education.  We thank our parents for standing with their children’s teachers, paraprofessionals and clinicians.”

 Now the battle shifts to the City Council where Ald. Bob Fioretti (2nd) filed a resolution signed by 32 aldermen, demanding that CPS officials explain the rationale for closing neighborhood schools and turning them over to privately-run charter schools. It also asked that CPS provide a list of all proposed school actions, and “transparently describe’’ the research and formulas used to create the list.