“Absolutely not. I do not want to be the mayor of Chicago. . I have no interest in that job right now,” said Jackson, CEO of Hope Chicago, a non-profit that funds post-secondary education for urban students. “I’m an educator.”
Ayo Dosunmu Is a 2-Way Contributor, Ideal in New York theknickswall.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from theknickswall.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times
Janice Jackson is leaving her post as chief executive of Chicago Public Schools when her contract expires at the end of June, she announced Monday.
Jackson’s departure comes at a critical juncture for the nation’s third-largest school system not only as it begins its recovery from an unprecedented disruption to education with the majority of students still learning remotely, but also as two other top leaders are set to leave.
“It is with that adoration that I have led this great school district as CEO for the past four years,” Jackson wrote in a letter to CPS families announcing her departure Monday. “While I feel there is still more work to be done in CPS, I also believe it is time to pass the torch to new leadership for the next chapter.
Ashlee Rezin Garcia/Sun-Times
Chicago Public Schools CEO Janice Jackson is getting a $40,000 raise, bringing her salary to $300,000 in a mid-pandemic increase that was unanimously approved by the city’s school board.
Jackson, 43, is a former social studies teacher and CPS graduate who, when she was appointed to the role in 2018 by former Mayor Rahm Emanuel, became the first alumna who also taught in the district to lead the nation’s third largest school system. She was preceded by years of executives who had not previously been educators.
Jackson is a parent of a CPS student and has overseen improvements in math and reading scores and graduation rates, but she’s also seen her share of scandals in her time at CPS’ central office and was at the helm during the longest teachers strike in three decades.