As school year winds down, time running out to name new Chicago Public Schools, or CPS, CEO

CHICAGO (WLS) — As the school year winds down, time is ticking to name a new Chicago Public Schools CEO.

While the 21-member School Board is a divided one, they all agree the district’s next leader should be a superintendent, not a chief operating officer.

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“How could we possibly ask the state to help fund our schools when we are not in alignment with state protocol, which is a superintendent?” elected Board member Dr. Che “Rhymefest” Smith said.

Smith led the effort to get every school member to pass a non-binding resolution requiring the next CPS leader, interim or permanent, to have a superintendent’s license.

“Superintendent’s licensure means you have a special certification that says you know the core work of schools, you know how schools should be ran, and you also have a master’s degree in education,” Smith said.

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But, Mayor Brandon Johnson, a former teacher, does not think the license is necessary to lead the nation’s fourth-largest school district.

“There are individuals who have taught at the community college level and have led at the community college level that could be available for positions like that,” Johnson said.

Johnson says while a strong education background is important, so is a leader who shares his vision on the direction of CPS, specifically sustainable community schools.

Because CPS CEO Pedro Martinez leaves in June, the mayor says he will have to choose an interim CEO. He used School Board President Sean Harden as an example of the kind of leader he is looking for.

“I actually think there’s something pretty special about our board president, which I think is a model for how our next interim could relate to the school board, someone who is a product of our public education system,” Johnson said.