Budget 2025

Dear Friends and Colleagues, 

Four years ago, when our schools were shuttered by a worldwide pandemic, we knew there would be profound effects on our students’ education. What we did not know was how strong Chicago’s children would emerge from that very challenging time.

The gains students at all grade levels achieved during the 2023-24 school year are a testament to their resilience, and to the talent and dedication of our District’s educators and staff. Our youngest learners saw their literacy proficiency quadruple, while our middle-grades students ranked #1 among large school districts for reading recovery since the pandemic, and #3 in recovery for reading and math combined. Meanwhile, our Class of 2024 graduates earned more than $2 billion in college scholarships, with nearly 6,000 of these students completing high school having already earned college credit.

The FY2025 budget, which totals $9.9 billion, protects many of the investments that have propelled these impressive gains. It includes $149 million in additional school-level funding when compared to last year, and doubles down on investments that are driving student growth, including learning acceleration, extended learning time, and social and behavioral supports. The FY2025 budget also increases support for our priority populations, including our English Learners, our special education students, and our Students in Temporary Living Situations (STLS). And because every child deserves a safe, supportive learning environment, this budget provides $38 million in funding for programs and resources that prioritize not only students’ physical safety, but their mental and emotional wellbeing.

The above is a high-level summary of what CPS’ FY2025 budget will do. But the real story is how we got here.

This year, CPS dramatically changed the way we allocate funding for our schools. We introduced a new budget model that moves fully away from Student-Based Budgeting (SBB), and into an era that is rooted in educational equity. In other words, funding decisions no longer revolve around the number of students in a school, but rather on the unique needs of the students in that school.

For the first time in CPS history, every school now has a guaranteed set of positions and resources that are centrally funded by the District. These include an assistant principal, a clerk, and at least one school counselor, along with an established number of core and holistic teachers. Additional funding is then provided to schools based on our District’s Opportunity Index, which uses a variety of factors to determine the unique needs of each community.

By allocating a baseline of resources to every school, then layering additional supports based on the needs of those children furthest from opportunity, CPS is setting a standard that ensures all schools can offer a high-quality education, no matter their size, type, or location.

There is much to celebrate in our FY2025 budget, and in the path we took to arrive at this place. But we must also acknowledge the very real, very significant financial concerns that are facing our District, now and in the coming years.

Our challenge this year was to close a budget gap of $505 million, which we accomplished by rigorously identifying efficiencies, maximizing grant funding, and reducing spending across the District’s Central Office and citywide departments. This work allowed us to balance the FY2025 budget and protect school funding for next year. But it is only the start of a troubling financial forecast.

Without a significant increase in revenue, our five-year financial outlook shows CPS facing budget deficits of at least half a billion dollars per year. This would obviously have a devastating effect on our ability to provide students with the education they need to continue their recovery from the pandemic and be fully prepared to succeed in college, career, and civic life.

We must view this dire financial forecast as a call to action. It must bolster our continued fight for equitable funding from the State of Illinois, which currently funds CPS at only 81% of what the state’s own funding formula says is necessary to meet our students’ needs.

We must also consider CPS’ financial outlook when working with our labor partners. The projected deficits outlined above do not include the cost of pay increases for members of the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) or the Chicago Principals and Administrators Association (CPAA), both of which are currently in contract negotiations with the District. 

The FY25 budget does not yet include a pending salary increase for the District’s most significant workforce, our teachers. CPS anticipates amending the budget at a later date to reflect the cost of these agreements.

The road ahead will not be easy. But I’m confident that if we work together, our District’s future will remain bright. Our FY2025 budget represents the first step on this path toward continued success. I am proud of this budget, as it protects the investments that helped our students achieve remarkable gains last school year, while also creating a new standard of equity for how we fund our schools.

I thank the members of our CPS community who have engaged in our budget planning process thus far, and look forward to receiving additional feedback from our stakeholders at the District’s upcoming budget hearings. Details on these hearings can be found at cps.edu/budget.

Thank you all for your partnership as we work toward our mission of providing every child from every community in Chicago with the education they need to grow, thrive, and achieve their dreams.

Sincerely,

Pedro Martinez
Chief Executive Officer
Chicago Public Schools