Chicago Public Schools finds itself stuck in a quagmire as it tries to transfer students out of a charter school network that has, thus far, refused to officially close, even though it will run out of money next month.The unprecedented situation is creating confusion for some 545 students as they fa ce the prospect of finding a new school just months before the end of the year. It’s also fueled an ongoing debate about the adequacy of charter school funding and raised questions about charter school accountability.Aspira Charter School Network sent out layoff notices on Wednesday to about 60 teachers and staff, acknowledging that CPS is transitioning students out of their two Northwest Side high schools and that the district “will not provide any further funding for the operation of these schools.”But in those notices Aspira leaders also say they hope the school closures are “temporary.” CEO Edgar Lopez tells WBEZ that legally he had to send out the layoff notices, pointing out that he even got one. He said he is still working to keep the schools open through June.In another sign that Aspira has not yet given up: the charter network launched a crowdsourcing campaign to try to raise money so that students can “finish out the school year in a stable and uninterrupted environment.” But it has raised only $2,000 in the six days since it launched — well short of the millions that Aspira has said it needs to continue paying teachers for the next few months.CPS officials finally made it clear last week that they think students should abandon Aspira. They sent letters to families saying that students will be offered a seat at a nearby school for the remainder of the school year. CPS also met with families Thursday afternoon.Still, they noted that Aspira’s charter, which allows it to operate schools within CPS, is not being revoked “at this time.”CPS says state law makes it difficult to close Aspira outrightSchool board members approved Aspira’s most recent contract back in May. It runs from July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2027. But Aspira hasn’t signed a written agreement yet and CPS says they are still in negotiations with the charter operator, as well as several others approved in May.Yet CPS says they can’t just close Aspira, regardless of whether there’s a signed written agreement.“The Illinois Charter School Law explicitly states that, ‘no local school board may arbitrarily or capriciously revoke or not renew a charter” and “revocation shall take place at the end of a school year,’” a CPS spokesperson told WBEZ in an email.Earlier this week, CPS interim CEO/Superintendent Macquline King said those terms put the school district in a tricky position.“They have to elect to self-close or CPS will be in violation of their contract,” King said. “We are walking a very fine line to respond in a way that is humane and acceptable and shows that we hear all of the community members that come before us each day, while honoring the contract.”The Chicago Teachers Union, though, which represents Aspira teachers, clinicians and classroom aides, thinks the school district should be taking more definitive action. Union officials say the school district should be more focused on the “crisis facing students” rather than the “district’s desire to avoid the possibility of litigation.”The union called on CPS to allow students to transfer together in cohorts, to designate specific “welcoming” schools that will take in Aspira students and to allow some Aspira teachers and other staff to follow their students so they see familiar faces.Meanwhile, the Illinois Network of Charter Schools, which advocates for charter schools, said CPS should have done more to prevent Aspira from running out of money.The group said that CPS’ inaction was “political and not in the best interest of CPS families,” noting that many Aspira students and families were affected by ramped up federal immigration enforcement in their neighborhoods.“Stability matters right now,” INCS officials said in a statement. “Keeping both campuses open through the end of the academic year should be the focus — and would avoid the obvious negative consequences of moving high schoolers to an unfamiliar school just weeks ahead of graduation.”INCS and Aspira also say CPS has made it harder for charter schools to operate by providing too little funding per student and changing how it assigns students to schools. CPS has said it is providing charters as much funding as it can, while complying with state law.CPS is increasingly finding it is limited in how it can address troubled charter schools.When school districts started giving contracts to private organizations to run public schools 30 years ago, a selling point was that their contracts could simply be canceled and it would be easier to close a charter school than one run by the district.But school board members have hesitated to close charters or let them voluntarily close as research has shown that school closings often harm students. Over the last two years, Chicago’s school board has voted to take over six privately run charter schools after their operators no longer wanted to run them.The district also has had to contend with legal challenges. In 2022, a judge prevented CPS from revoking its contract with the charter network Urban Prep, which the district sought to cancel due to Urban Prep’s financial troubles and allegations of sexual misconduct by its then-CEO.Urban Prep contended that a state moratorium on school closures applied to charter schools and, after a protracted legal fight, was allowed to stay open. That moratorium is no longer in place, but Urban Prep still holds a contract to run schools in CPS. ...read more read less