According to the preliminary data analyzed by Chalkbeat, Chicago Public Schools (CPS) enrollment has fallen to a historic low; the district reportedly lost 12,000 students in one year, and 150 of its schools sit half-empty.
The 4% decrease in students from last year is driving up costs and limiting course offerings.
This reflects a broader shift in American education, where families are increasingly exploring alternatives such as homeschooling, microschools, and school-choice programs
A declining birth rate, global migration, and the COVID-19 pandemic are believed to have contributed to record-low enrollment, but Laurie Higgins of Breakthrough Ideas says people, especially minorities, are tuning in to the school system's problems.
"The black and Hispanic communities are beginning to see that the test scores are plummeting, or at least not going up in Chicago Public Schools, while the unions that control them are rolling in money," Higgins states. "The black and Hispanic communities are not being served."
She says the unions are more interested in getting pay raises than in teaching children math, reading, and critical thinking skills.
"Public school teachers who are leftist activists can no longer indoctrinate the thousands of kids who have now left the school," she acclaims. "I hope that the number of people leaving the schools rises, the enrollment plummets."
Public schools lose financial support when students choose alternative education options because per-pupil enrollment figures often determine state and federal funding.
The CPS school board fired Superintendent Pedro Martinez last December without cause and soon brought on Dr. Macquline King as interim CEO and superintendent.
Other school districts struggling with enrollment loss have resorted to hiring consultants to recruit students.
