Chicago City Wire

Wirepoints is continuing to promote its report finding that Hispanic students are lagging in Chicago Public Schools.

The report was released recently in a press conference held at Pilsen’s Benito Juarez High School.

“CPS has too often evaded the scrutiny they deserve,” Wirepoints President Ted Dabrowski said. “We are grateful that Chicago media took an interest in this story. The Hispanic community is one of the only growing communities in Chicago. The future of the city depends in part on the education Hispanic students are getting today. These results represent a clear dereliction of duty by those who run Chicago’s Public Schools and the state officials who oversee them.”

Chicago Public Schools (CPS) is failing its Hispanic students, according to a report recently released by Wirepoints. The report highlights the poor academic performance of Hispanic students in schools where they form the majority. The data reveals that only 17% of Hispanic students in CPS can read at grade level, and only 12% are proficient in math. Despite these alarming statistics, CPS officials along with union and state representatives are accused of covering up the failures by implementing policies and using data that create a false perception of success. For example, CPS promoted 3rd-grade Hispanic students to 4th grade even though only 12% of them were reading at grade level. They also provided misleading graduation rates by declaring that 84% of Hispanic students graduated in 2022, despite their low reading and math scores. The report further highlights the disconnect between inflated teacher evaluations and actual student outcomes. Despite the significant investment in education—with Chicago spending $17,041 per student in 2020, the second highest among the nation's largest school districts—the academic achievement of Hispanic students remains alarmingly low.

FOX 32 Chicago reported on the press conference held at Benito Juarez High School. Dabrowski criticized CPS for providing parents with a false sense of their children's progress and urged a focus on literacy throughout the district. He called for collaboration between teachers, parents, unions and administrators to hold CPS accountable and highlighted the importance of the Latino community supporting one another.

Wirepoints argued that the report exposes significant disparities in educational outcomes, according to WBBM Newsradio. It is calling on CPS to address those gaps and provide better support for Hispanic students to ensure equal access to quality education and opportunities for success.