Family Update Letter #3

November 5, 2021

A Note From CPS Leadership Dear Colleagues, Families, and Supporters, The day that so many parents have been waiting for, myself included, is finally here! The CDC has approved COVID vaccines for children ages 5 to 11, meaning that the vast majority of Chicago’s kids are now eligible to be vaccinated. As the parent of two children who fall into this age group, I cannot wait for the peace of mind that will come from knowing my kids are protected from this virus. I don’t want any CPS parent to have to wait either, so in partnership with the mayor and other city agencies, I am making Friday, November 12 Vaccination Awareness Day for all CPS students. All of our schools will be closed on this day to give families ample opportunity to take their children to get vaccinated, either by your child’s pediatrician, or to one of many pharmacies and other health providers around the city who can get them vaccinated. Visit vaccines.gov/search to find a vaccine near you. Our District’s four regional vaccination clinics will remain open on this day to offer the vaccine, by appointment only. Information about accessing the vaccine at one of these locations can be found here. We understand that some parents may need support with child supervision on this day, so CPS is currently exploring limited childcare options with the Chicago Park District and other city partners. The more families who take this crucial step, the more children will be protected from illness, making our schools even safer than they already are. The vaccine dose for our younger children is just one-third of what is being given to adults, reducing the likelihood of side effects like sore arms, fever, and aches. And much to the relief of our kids, the needle used to administer their vaccine dose is much smaller! Getting your child vaccinated will not only help them protect themselves, their families, neighbors, and friends from COVID-19, but it will mean that your child will no longer have to quarantine or isolate if they are exposed to someone who gets COVID-19 at school and remain asymptomatic. This will be a great relief to parents and guardians who worry about disruptions to their child’s learning and often have to scramble to find child care if their child has to quarantine or isolate. I hope that all of our CPS families will see Vaccination Awareness Day as a call to action - an opportunity to let not one more day go by before protecting their children from the potential dangers of COVID-19. For those parents who still feel hesitant about the vaccine, I urge you to visit the CDC website to learn how safe and effective it is, and to better understand why getting vaccinated is in the best interest of all children. The holidays are almost upon us, and we know how much this time of year means to our kids. By getting our children vaccinated, we can safely gather family and friends without worry and concentrate on the joy of the season. This is my wish for all CPS families, so I will do everything in my power to make the vaccine readily available to our students, beginning on Friday, November 12, Vaccination Awareness Day. Sincerely, Pedro Martinez Chief Executive Officer Chicago Public Schools Around the District In-Person and Virtual Parent-Teacher Conferences With parent-teacher conferences right around the corner — Thursday, Nov. 17 for elementary school students and Friday, Nov. 18 for high school students — we want you to know that parents and guardians are encouraged to attend conferences in-person. For parents and guardians who feel uncomfortable with an in-person conference, a virtual option will be provided by the school. Schools will continue practicing CPS safety protocols during parent-teacher conferences, ensuring the following: Social distancing and mask-wearing is maintained Parents and guardians exhibit no symptoms of COVID-19 Parents and guardians conduct a self-screening prior to entry Please Note: Parents of our elementary school students may notice some changes to their child’s report card. Effective this school year, elementary report cards no longer include a placeholder for a Research Standards grade. In addition, the Speaking Standards and Listening Standards have been combined into one comprehensive subject titled Speaking and Listening Standards. We are confident that these changes will allow CPS to improve how we are measuring the academic achievement of our elementary school students. CPS Announces $10 Million Investment to Support School Staffing An agreement this week between the district and the Chicago Teachers’ Union will allocate $10 million to help ensure schools have adequate coverage in their classrooms throughout the 2021-22 school year. These funds will be used to expand substitute teacher pools and compensate those CPS educators who have been covering additional classes due to vacancies created by the pandemic. The goal of this investment is to ease the burden on administrators and educators so that they can focus their full attention on preparing students for success in and beyond the classroom. Promotion Policy Update for Elementary School Students CPS has made an important change to our Elementary Promotion policy. Beginning this year, promotion for students in benchmark grades 3, 6, and 8 will be determined based on the student’s final grades in Reading and Math and will not take into account any assessment scores. Students with final failing grades in Reading and/or Math for both the 21-22 school year and the 20-21 school year will be required to successfully complete summer school to be promoted to the next grade level. These changes were put in place by CPS and the Board of Education to allow the district time to understand how to assess student performance in the wake of learning disruptions created by the pandemic. These recent adjustments also allow the district to assess student performance from a historical perspective, instead of at one point in time. Electronic versions of the 2021-2022 School/Parent Guide to the Elementary School Promotion Policy may currently be found in English, Spanish, Simplified Chinese, Polish, Arabic and Urdu. An Exciting and Groundbreaking Fall Sports Season Our district is thrilled to congratulate the boys soccer team at George Washington High School on winning the Boys 2A Super Sectional Title. Under the leadership of head coach Alvaro Perez, who has been part of the Washington school community for more than 25 years, the team will now compete in the state semifinals on its quest to capture its first state title since 2013. This fall sports season has also brought an exciting first for the district; Konesha Rhea is the first Black female head coach of a CPS boys football team. In her role leading the team at the DuSable Campus, Coach Rhea is focused on encouraging her student-athletes, including four female players, to put in maximum effort at each practice and each game. She’s also committed to helping her team grow academically.