Chicago public schools lose ground as families choose alternatives
For families deciding where their children will learn, the column’s enrollment figures sharpen the stakes around school quality and choice.
A Fox News column reports that Chicago Public Schools’ share of the city’s remaining students fell from about 75 percent to 71 percent1, which the columnist says reflects families choosing other options1.
“they can't learn because the teachers cannot control the rowdier kids.”
School quality shapes choice
The column says Black students in selective-enrollment high schools are three times more likely to read at grade level than Black students in traditional public schools1. For families choosing where their children can learn, that comparison makes school quality central.
What the columnist blames
The column says students in neighborhood schools tell the writer, “they can't learn because the teachers cannot control the rowdier kids.”1 It also says the Chicago Teachers Union spent $4.2 million on politics and lobbying in 2025, while less than 18 percent of its spending went to representing teachers1. The column says CTU helped kill Illinois’ Invest in Kids scholarships, which allowed students to leave public schools, and used “days of action” to involve children in left-wing activism1.
Schools running below capacity
The column reports that 35 percent of Chicago schools are less than half full1.
What leaders should do
Chicago Public Schools leaders should answer the enrollment warning by putting classroom learning first and showing families why neighborhood schools are worth choosing. Parents weighing school options have a direct stake in whether school quality improves.
Sources
FAMILY BRIEF The news and network for the American family.
