The Chicago Board of Education, which runs Chicago Public Schools (CPS), is reportedly seeking to remove police officers from schools in the next academic year.
"Alderman Nicholas Sposato (38th) said that two school system sources have told him that the school board could make the decision as soon as its Jan. 25 meeting, possibly opting not to renew its approximately $10 million contract with the city for police officers," Nadig Newspapers reported.
"They told me there’s going to be no SROs," Sposato said.
The Chicago Board of Education is said to be seeking to strip Local School Councils, made up of parents, teachers and students, of their power to choose whether or not to have school resource officers (SROs) at their schools. After taking the decision away from local councils, the board will remove all officers from school grounds, according to local outlet WBEZ.
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"So much for democracy with the decision to get rid of SROs," Sposato said, who also said the move would be a "terrible idea."
Taft High School Principal Mark Grishaber shared concerns about the potential decision, saying safety is their primary concern.
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According to Grishaber, surveys show that parents, faculty and students at his school support police officers in schools 80-90%. He added that despite support for SROs, he had been told the board had already "made its decision."
When running for mayor, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson condemned police officers being on school grounds, saying that "armed officers have no place in schools in communities already struggling with over-incarceration, criminalization, profiling and mistrust."
However, Johnson approved Local School Councils voting on the presence of police officers in schools after being elected.
The Chicago Board of Education will reportedly vote this summer on whether to renew the police contract.
The Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) advocated for police officers to be removed from schools in 2020, amid the George Floyd protests.
"These students along with the parents, teachers and staff that support them have looked at the data, experienced the brutality and are calling for police-free schools," the CTU said in a statement in June 2020. "Members of the CPS community are calling on the $33 million contract between CPS and CPD to be better used for restorative justice coordinators, social workers, nurses, trauma supports and other critical programs in schools."
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The Illinois Policy Institute, a think tank that tracks policy decisions in the state, said, "Local School Councils already have the power to remove officers, but district leaders are taking away that local control."
"Each school in CPS is different. Principals and other community members on Local School Councils understand the environment and needs of their schools. They are best equipped to determine the necessity of school resource officers," the think tank added.
The Chicago Board of Education did not immediately respond for comment.
