Voter Guides

Kids First Chicago (K1C) is excited to share the comprehensive voter guide created by WBEZ, the Chicago Sun-Times, and Chalkbeat Chicago for the city’s first-ever school board elections. Developed with input from organizations like K1C, you’ll find essential information and survey responses from every school board candidate.

Access the Guide

About the Chicago Board of Education

Chicago's school board will soon transition from being appointed by the mayor to being elected by voters. Here’s everything you need to know to prepare for these historic elections.

What You Need to Know

Did you know Chicago will soon have an elected school board?

In July 2021, Governor Pritzker signed a new law that puts Chicago's Board of Education on a timeline to transition from an appointed board to a fully elected board. The Chicago Board of Education will transition from 7 members appointed by the Mayor of Chicago to 21 elected members by 2027. The law also creates a Non-Citizen Advisory Board and a Black Student Achievement Committee.

In the spring of 2024, Illinois lawmakers passed the final bill, SB15, which finalized the election districts and clarified how the transition will take place. Click here to see the final districts and subdistricts.

On November 5, 2024, Chicago voters will elect the first 10 members, and 11 others will be appointed by the Mayor.

Our Students, Our School Board

Led by the parents of our Elected School Board Task Force, we have held dozens of information sessions to educate parents about the law and the pending changes, hosted town hall meetings, and spearheaded the campaign for districts that fairly represent the demographics of our CPS community.

Here are some highlights:

What parents want

We surveyed 300 CPS parents in early 2021 and polled over 700 Chicago voters in 2023, and have presented to thousands of parents in between. Their priorities for the future elected school board have stayed the same for the past few years.

Fair racial representation

The school board should reflect the student body it serves.

Parent seats on the board

Some Board seats should be reserved for CPS parents.

Non-citizen participation

Parents should be allowed to vote, regardless of immigration status.

Campaign spending limits

Money should not determine who wins.

Compensation

Board Members should receive some compensation for their time.

Deeper Dive

Read the key findings of our citywide poll on Chicago’s transition to an elected school board.

What can you do?

Many CPS parents still do not know much about the coming transition to an elected school board. Print out our flyer or share it with parents in your school community to help educate the public.

Download our flyer and help spread the word!

Get Involved

Meet with our team to learn about opportunities to help shape Chicago’s new Elected School Board.

Meet with Our Team