CHICAGO (CBS) – Schools hand out report cards throughout the year and on Thursday, Chicago Public Schools got its review in the annual report from the Office of Inspector General.
There were no letter grades, so it's perhaps best to summarize the results as a mixed bag. CBS 2's Marie Saavedra sorted it all out for parents and taxpayers.
The 120-page report was produced by the OIG, the outside watchdog that keeps an eye on CPS. The district is tasked with educating more than 300,000 students in the city.
CBS 2 spoke with the report's author, Inspector General Will Fletcher, about the findings.
Saavedra: "What are the three biggest takeaways from this report and the status of CPS as you see it?"
Fletcher: "Our sexual allegations unit has been able to close more cases than it opened for the first time in 2022. That means that we are getting more cases promptly resolved, that we're able to make certain that every complaint that comes in gets the appropriate amount of resources that it needs in order to make informed decisions about whether or not to pull staff, whether or not to substantiate investigations, but also to make sure that student safety is kept as a priority in CPS.
"There's been a persistent problem in CPS with miscoding students that are chronically truant as having transferred out of the school or have become missing all together, when in fact, the school has some information or they believe the student is just chronically truant."
Saavedra: "Are yo u finding that this is an effort to paint the school in a better light, that there aren't as many truant students?"
Fletcher: "Yes, that's what the gist of that finding is."
Saavedra: "I wanted to ask about the discover that COVID-19 funds are being used in overtime and extra pay."
Fletcher: "Most of the pandemic relief money that CPS has received is being used on salaries and benefits. So that being the case, the district needs to make certain that it's auditing, that it's overseeing the expenditure of those funds because that windfall is not coming back."
In response to the report, CPS said it takes its responsibility to serve families seriously and will address any cases where policies are violated and hold those people accountable.
In a statement, CPS said "Chicago Public Schools greatly values our partnership with the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) and we support the work to investigate all issues of misconduct among our 40,000 team members. As a District, we take seriously our responsibility to serve our families with integrity and to address individuals who breach CPS policies and the public's trust and hold them accountable. CPS will continue to ensure our District policies and procedures support the highest ethical standards to ensure our valued team members act in the best interest of our students."
Many inspector general investigations begin with tips from parents and students. The inspector general's office provides a confidential complaint form on its website.
Marie Saavedra joined the CBS2 Chicago news team in October 2020 as an anchor. She grew up in Evanston and is a graduate of the Missouri School of Journalism.
