Overview
- Students walked out and held a press conference this week to demand counseling and safe spaces after the school lost three students in March and April and organizers say trusted community supports were cut.
- School leaders notified community groups in mid-May that their partnerships would end and staff from Southside Together and GoodKids MadCity were removed from the campus, according to organizers and an email obtained by reporters.
- Chicago Public Schools says the groups are not active CPS vendors and that the school offers an on-site counselor and referral options, but students and organizers say those resources do not replace daily, trauma-informed relationships.
- Students took their complaints to the Chicago Board of Education and plan to speak at the local school council as organizers reported suspension threats that school officials later said would not be enforced.
- The peace room was created in 2021 with funds freed after the school removed an on-campus police officer and it hosted restorative circles and advocacy programs, raising questions about how the district decides which community services remain in schools.