As Chicago Public Schools (CPS) searches for its next chief executive, a recent survey reveals that community members prioritize high-quality instruction, school safety, and effective communication skills in their ideal leader.
Conducted by Zencity, a company dedicated to community engagement and research, the survey gathered feedback from approximately 2,700 respondents, supplemented by an additional 880 individuals reached through board members and Alma Advisory Group, the firm engaged to assist in the search for a new CPS CEO.
The survey, which took place between May and June, forms a critical component of the Chicago Board of Education’s community engagement process aimed at finding a replacement for former CPS CEO Pedro Martinez, who departed from the position last month.
Traditionally, the mayor has had the responsibility of appointing the CPS CEO. However, with the establishment of the district’s first partially elected and partially appointed board, that power has now shifted. In April, the board enacted a resolution initiating a community engagement process designed to incorporate public feedback into the selection of the next leader. Moreover, the resolution mandated that the new CEO must possess a superintendent’s license, a requirement that has not been enforced since 1995, when the district fell under mayoral control.
“Historically, CPS has not done a great job of involving community input and desire in a meaningful way,” noted board member Jessica Biggs, who chairs the board’s transition team. “There are a lot of things that [the board has] disagreed on, but we were all really clear and aligned that we wanted our [CEO search] process to be centered around community engagement and dialogue.”
The board conducted a series of 11 community feedback sessions, along with focus groups and panel discussions, enabling dialogue with over 1,400 participants, according to Monica Rosen, CEO of Alma Advisory Group.
Public feedback will play a pivotal role in refining the job description as Alma recruits and assesses potential candidates. In June, Macquline King, a former principal and City Hall education advisor, was appointed as the interim CEO.
Zencity employed diverse strategies to ensure that the survey accurately reflects the demographics of Chicago adults with children enrolled in public schools. The company utilized a technique known as “rake weighting,” which mitigates bias in the representation of responses.
Among the 2,700 calculated respondents that Zencity directly engaged, nearly half identified as parents or family members of CPS students, educators, or central office employees. Notably, 43% of those surveyed claimed no affiliation with the CPS community.
Demographic breakdowns showed that approximately 33% of respondents identified as Hispanic, 29% as Black, 28% as white, 6% as multiracial, and around 4% as Asian American. In contrast, the CPS student population comprises 47% Hispanic, 34% Black, 11% white, just under 5% Asian American, and nearly 2% multiracial.
Though most respondents completed the survey in English, it was also made available in Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, and Polish to ensure accessibility.
When inquired about which student-related topics should be prioritized by the next CEO, 32% of participants emphasized high-quality instruction as paramount. Other notable areas included preparing students for future careers and enhancing academic outcomes for children from diverse backgrounds while addressing inequalities in learning opportunities.
More than 60% of respondents offered a positive assessment of current CPS instruction. However, there were variances in perception between CPS employees and parents compared to those without connections to the district, suggesting a correlation between first-hand experiences and confidence in the system, according to Zencity.
On operational priorities, school safety topped the list, as noted by 34% of respondents. The next most common priority was supporting teachers, with 30%, followed by 27% advocating for the financial health of CPS.
Interestingly, the survey results varied significantly across different districts in terms of safety concerns. For instance, only 1 in 5 participants from District 2B, located in the city’s far Northeast neighborhoods, identified school safety as a primary concern. In stark contrast, nearly 50% of respondents in District 3, which encompasses Humboldt Park and Logan Square, deemed school safety a top priority.
When prompted about essential qualities for the next schools chief, 42% of survey participants indicated they desire a leader with strong and clear communication skills. Close to 39% prioritized candidates with innovation, strategic thinking, and problem-solving abilities, while 37% expressed a wish for a leader who actively seeks and integrates feedback from students, parents, and staff.
Additional responses gathered by board members and Alma from 880 individuals, while maintaining some similarities with the earlier set of responses, demonstrated distinct differences as well. Although high-quality instruction was universally recognized as crucial, financial health emerged as a prominent operational priority among this smaller group.
During public feedback sessions, residents expressed pride in CPS’s improving graduation rates, student success, and a heightened focus on equity and inclusion. Nevertheless, they also called for stabilizing the district’s finances, expanding post-high school opportunities such as more career and technical education, addressing enrollment declines, rectifying historical injustices faced by various communities—especially the Black community— and tackling mental health challenges.
Concern over public disagreements within CPS was repeatedly mentioned, with feedback suggesting that ongoing conflicts between CPS, the mayor’s office, and the Chicago Teachers Union have created a distracting atmosphere that detracts from the educational experience of students.
“Parents shared with us that the public fighting they’re seeing among adults in the system has been a distraction and perhaps worse, a bad model for their children,” Rosen conveyed.
The job listing for the CEO role was posted in April and has attracted a “few dozen” applicants, according to Biggs. As Alma refines the job specifications based on community insights, formal recruitment efforts will commence. The board aims to have a newly appointed CEO by the end of September.
image source from：chalkbeat
