Chicago Public Schools Celebrates Investments in New Sensory Rooms for Students with Disabilities

CHICAGO – Chicago Public Schools (CPS) and Children First Fund (CFF) today celebrated funding that will create sensory rooms in 22 schools across the District, as part of ongoing efforts to improve educational environments for students with disabilities. The rooms – which provide soothing lighting, soft seating, and other calming therapeutic tools – are critical safe spaces for students with disabilities who can become overwhelmed and overstimulated in traditional classrooms.

“A key goal in our five-year-strategic plan is to provide more opportunities for students with disabilities and to emphasize that all learners have a rightful presence in our schools,” said CPS CEO Pedro Martinez. “We are especially grateful to Special Children’s Charities and all our community partners who are investing in our mission to provide a high-quality education for every child, in every neighborhood.”

The new sensory rooms are funded with $1.3 million from Special Children’s Charities (SCC), which invests in programs for students with disabilities in CPS and City Colleges of Chicago. The funds were granted to SCC through the Federal ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 or COVID-19 Stimulus Package), and administered by the State of Illinois through the Illinois Department of Human Services. Children First Fund, the CPS Foundation, accepted the SCC donation on behalf of the District.

“Whether it is through an art and music therapy session or a visit to a sensory room, we believe these experiences not only help our students, but also their classmates and teachers,” said Ray Baker, president of the Board of Directors of SCC. “We are very proud to provide the funding for the sensory rooms in 22 Chicago Public Schools locations and look forward to seeing the benefits they will provide to our students with disabilities in the city.”

Ald. Matt O’Shea, 19th Ward and Vice President of the Board of Directors of SCC, expressed his excitement for the efforts, which he called an important initiative that offers wide-ranging benefits for students who are often overlooked.

“Every child deserves to have the optimal learning environment and it is incumbent on all of us to make sure our spaces are inclusive and built for the diverse needs of our students,” O’Shea said. “These rooms will go a long way in making sure our kids feel safe and cared for so they can fully focus on learning at school.”

CEO Martinez and other District officials joined Baker and O’Shea on Monday at South Shore Fine Arts Academy to recognize the investment and showcase a new room that is already in use and has been used to help calm students before or after a challenging situation. While a handful of other CPS schools may have created similar rooms, the SCC investment represents the first widespread implementation of such rooms.

“We use the sensory room as an extended classroom for our most vulnerable students and as a place to help students who are overstimulated in other spaces,” said South Shore Principal Vicki Brown. “It allows students to self-regulate and have a space to decompress with clinicians available to assist. It is a place that we positively love at South Shore Fine Arts Academy.”

The sensory rooms are equipped with a range of calming sensory elements, including glowing bubble tubes and sparkling fiber optic light strands that create mesmerizing visual effects, and high-tech wall panels that allow students of all abilities to engage and interact in meaningful ways. Specialized sensory seating like the Squeezie Seat and Compression Canoe offer deep pressure input that can help kids settle and renew focus, while the therapy swings and soft rocker chairs provide an outlet for sensory integration.

Students within CPS’ cluster program will have the opportunity to access the sensory rooms as needed, and an estimated 1,500 students will be served through this investment. It is one part of ongoing efforts to provide more opportunities for students with disabilities and aligns with the District’s latest five-year-strategic plan, Success 2029: Together We Rise, which builds on current practices and strategies over the past three years with a concerted effort to double down on core instruction and interventions to help struggling students.

There are about 1,000 more special education teachers today in the District than five years ago, and CPS’ latest budget includes an increase of $100 million for special education initiatives. The District’s Office for Students with Disabilities (OSD) also recently launched a survey to gather community and parent feedback on elements within schools that need improvement.

“We continue to see and increase investments that improve the daily learning experience for our students with disabilities so they have all the same opportunities and resources as their peers,” said Josh Long, OSD Chief. “We have a roadmap in place and we are laser focused on making sure we create more opportunities for a group of students who have been marginalized for too long.”

Installation of the sensory rooms, which was done in two phases, began over the summer and are ongoing. Currently, six schools have sensory rooms up and running, with the remaining 16 scheduled to be completed in the coming months.

The schools benefiting from this donation are as follows:

• Al Raby High School for Community & Environment (East Garfield Park)
• Burnside Elementary Scholastic Academy (Chatham)
• Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences (Mt. Greenwood)
• Walter S. Christopher Elementary School (Gage Park)
• Henry R. Clissold Elementary School (West Beverly)
• Oscar DePriest Elementary School (Austin)
• John C. Dore Elementary School (Clearing)
• John Harvard Elementary School of Excellence (Auburn-Gresham)
• Helge A. Haugan Elementary School (Albany Park)
• John Hancock College Preparatory High School (Clearing)
• Jane A. Neil Elementary School (Chatham)
• Mahalia Jackson Elementary School (Auburn Gresham)
• Minnie Miñoso Academy (Bridgeport)
• Mt. Greenwood Elementary School (Mt. Greenwood)
• Henry H. Nash Elementary School of Fine & Performing Arts (Austin)
• Northside Learning Center (North Park)
• South Shore Fine Arts Academy (South Shore)
• Southside Occupational Academy (Englewood)
• Talcott Fine Arts and Museum Academy (West Town)
• James N. Thorp Elementary School (South Chicago)
• John A. Walsh Elementary (Pilsen)
• John Whistler Elementary School (West Pullman)

SCC has a long history of funding programs for diverse learners in Chicago Public Schools and City Colleges of Chicago. In February 2022, SCC provided the funding for art and music therapy for diverse learners in four Chicago Public Schools. Currently, the program serves nearly 70 CPS locations, with more than 2,500 students benefiting.

The organization also funds the After 22 program, which launched in the Fall of 2022 at City Colleges of Chicago. The After 22 Program connects adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities ages 22 and older to career training, educational opportunities, and jobs. This program also teaches students life skills, provides them with coaches and mentors, and allows them to experience social and extracurricular activities. Students who complete this program earn a Career Advancement Certificate from the college (not an academic degree). This past summer, the After 22 program celebrated its first-ever graduating class.

SCC provides funds for year-round programming and events to thousands of athletes within the city who have intellectual disabilities and participate in Special Recreation programs through the Chicago Park District and Chicago Public Schools. In addition to sports, SCC also funds cultural institution partnerships, arts programming, an athlete-produced cable access television show, cooking nights, dance parties, special events, field trips, and more.


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