After being down an appointee for a month, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson has named a Black Jewish mom to be the 21st school board member.
Cydney Wallace will join the partly-appointed, partly-elected board. She has children in Chicago Public Schools, works for the City Clerk’s office and is a board member for the Jewish Council on Urban Affairs, according to a press release. The Jewish Council is a progressive organization that focuses on local social justice issues, such as housing and fighting anti-semitism and racism.
Wallace will represent a chunk of the 8th district that stretches all the way from a part of the Loop through Chinatown, Bridgeport through Back of the Yards and Gage Park. The other side of the district is represented by elected member Angel Gutierrez.
The law required Johnson to appoint members who live on the opposite side of the district as the elected member, making finding appointees a complicated puzzle.
Johnson announced the appointment of 10 members, including the school board president, on December 17 and those appointees were sworn in a month ago. The mayor’s office said the delay choosing the 21st member was due to the fact that the position is unpaid, time-consuming and often “thankless.”
Wallace comes to the board at a controversial time during which the mayor needs members who will represent his interests. The Chicago Teachers Union contract is still being negotiated and, starting in mid-March, the CTU could legally strike. The last school board approved a budget that does not include money to pay for teacher raises or other costs associated with the contract or a large municipal pension payment that the city needs to pay to balance its budget.
The Chicago Tribune reported last week that the board is planning to hold hearings in March to consider its options to incur costs and end the year with a balanced budget, as required by law.
The board will also have to hire a new CEO, after the last board fired current CEO Pedro Martinez. And it will have to confront future budget deficits, which CPS estimates will likely be at least $500 million, and as much as $700 million, annually.
Sarah Karp covers education for WBEZ. Follow her on X @WBEZeducation and @sskedreporter.