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CTU members took buses to the state capital and split into groups to meet with legislators and make their case for additional funding as CPS faces a nearly $400 million budget deficit for next school year and some schools are reporting cuts.
The encampment at the Lincoln Park campus had been been in place since April 30. The action came after school officials said they had reached an impasse with the protesters.
Parents and others don’t blame teachers. Instead, they see the lack of learning as an effect of poverty and other challenges, a poll of 2,100 Chicagoans finds.
Chicago residents are divided over whether parents should be able to bypass their neighborhood school, and two-thirds want to prioritize funding those local schools.
“Things people don’t have to prep for and don’t think are a big deal are real-life issues for us,” said Laura Florek, a Northbrook mom of two young adults with autism.