As special education teacher Gwendolyn Kinard listened to updates earlier this week on Chicago Public Schools’ long-awaited Black Student Success Plan, one feeling stood out: relief.
“First of all, I’m happy that it still exists,” said Kinard, who teaches at Jungman STEM Magnet Elementary. “The president was working on dismantling (diversity, equity and inclusion), but we survived.”
The community roundtable was the first in a series outlining the rollout of the district’s five-year blueprint to break down achievement barriers for Black students. Among other goals, the plan aims to close academic gaps, double the number of Black male teachers and reduce disciplinary practices for Black students.
Advocates who champion it argue that Black students, who make up a third of the student body, are uniquely positioned to fail because of long-standing racial inequalities and discrimination across the U.S.
But the plan came under federal scrutiny last year, when the U.S. Education Department opened an investigation into allegations of racial discrimination — part of a broader crackdown against DEI programming. After district officials refused to scrap the initiative, the agency pulled $8 million in unrelated federal magnet school grants from CPS.
Months later, the district is forging ahead.
