CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- Yet another showdown is underway between Chicago Public Schools and the Chicago Teachers Union.
Chicago Public Schools announced plans Tuesday for high school students to return to in-person learning starting April 19; the first day of the district’s fourth quarter.
The current plan would allow high schoolers to opt for in-person learning at least two days a week.
CPS said it has been meeting with the Chicago Teachers Union to establish a plan, but the CTU said no agreement has been reached.
The union issued a statement Tuesday night to rank and file CTU members in response to CPS' email to parents "distorting the status" of negotiations at the table:
"You may have received an email from Mayor Lori Lightfoot's CPS leadership team this evening claiming April 19 is the target date to reopen high school buildings, based on 'concepts' that our union and the district have discussed.
"Let me be clear: We have no agreement on returning to in-person learning in high schools on any date, nor will there be an agreement until we know our school buildings can reopen safely," the CTU statement read.
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The union calls the announcement “more unilateralism from the mayor’s handpicked Board of Education - a way to publicly roll out a boilerplate plan created behind closed doors with no educator support, stakeholder engagement, parent input, or student agency."
Additionally, CTU said high school students should be a part of discussions on how and when to return to the classroom.
Chicago Public Schools is holding an informational town hall meeting for high school families Wednesday at 5 p.m.
Meanwhile, the Chicago Teachers Union said it has no data on how many vaccines CPS has offered educators; and that testing protocols aren’t uniform for either students or staff in many elementary schools, while there have also been multiple breakdowns with the health screener.
CTU said CPS continues to fail in providing timely, up-to-date COVID data to both the union and the public.