List of CEOs of Chicago Public Schools

Chicago Public Schools is headed by a chief executive officer (CEO) appointed by the mayor of Chicago. The most recent CEO was Pedro Martinez. This job is equivalent to a superintendent, and, before 1995, the occupant of this office was known as the "superintendent of Chicago Public Schools".

Chief Executive Officer of Chicago Public Schools
Incumbent vacant since December 20, 2024[1]
Inaugural holder	John Clark Dore (as "Superintendent")
Formation	1854 (as "Superintendent")

History

The position of chief executive officer was preceded by one of "Superintendent".^[2] The first individual to hold this position had been John Clark Dore, who assumed the position in 1854.^[2][3] In 1855, the authority to remove the Superintendent was given to the Board of School Inspectors by the same ordinance which created the city's first high school, meaning the Chicago Common Council (today known as the "Chicago City Council") no longer held this authority.^[3]

The role of Superintendent, when established, did not have well defined duties.^[3] The office was originally subordinate to the Board of School Inspectors, and later the Chicago Board of Education (which supplanted the Board of School Inspectors in 1857).^[3] Its powers were limited.^[3] The role was, in part, shaped by its officeholders over the years.^[3] Since the ordinance which established the office did not require administrative authority to be given to the superintendent, there was no clear delineation of policymaking and administrative roles between the superintendent and the school board.^[3]

In practice, a stronger superintendency was developed, beginning under Edwin G. Cooley's tenure.^[3] However, it was not until the 1917 Otis Bill that the superintendency was granted exclusive administrative power over schools.^[3]

In 1995, the Government of Illinois passed the Chicago School Reform Amendatory Act, which replaced the position of superintendent with that of chief executive officer.^[2] The first individual to serve under the title of CEO was Paul Vallas.^[2]

Officeholders

Superintendents of Chicago Public Schools

The following is a table listing the individuals that held the position of "superintendent of Chicago Public Schools" from its creation in 1854 through its dissolution in 1995:

Ella Flagg Young (served 1909–1915); CPS' first female superintendent; first female public school superintendent in a major US city^[4]

Name		Tenure	Citation
	John Clark Dore	1854—1856	[2][5][6][7]
	William H. Wells	1856—1864	[6][5]
	Josiah Little Pickard	1864—1877	[6][5]
	Duane Doty	1877—1880	[6][5]
	George C. Howland	1880—1891	[6][5]
	Albert G. Lane	1891—1898	[6][8][5]
	Elisha Benjamin Andrews	1898—1900	[6][9]
	Edwin G. Cooley	1900—1909	[6]
	Ella Flagg Young	1909—1915	[6]
	John Shoop	1915—1918	[6]
	Charles Ernest Chadsey	1919—1920	[6]
	Peter A. Mortenson	1920—1924	[6]
	William McAndrew	1924—1928	[6][3][10]
	William J. Bogan	1928—1936	[6][10]
	William Johnson	1936—1946	[6][11]
	George Cassell (acting)	1946–1947	[12]
	Herold C. Hunt	1947—1953	[6]
	Benjamin Willis	1953—1966	[6][13]
	Thaddeus Lubera (interim)	1966	[14]
	James F. Redmond	1966—1975	[6][13]
	Joseph P. Hannon	1975—1979	[13]
	Angeline Caruso (interim)	1979—1981	[6][13]
	Ruth B. Love	1981—1985	[6][13]
	Manford Byrd Jr.	1985—1989	[13]
	Charles D. Almo (interim)	1989—1990	[13]
	Ted Kimbrough	1990—1993	[13]
	Richard E. Stephenson Jr. (interim)	1993	[15][16][17]
	Argie Johnson	1993—1995	[18][19]

Chief Executive Officers of Chicago Public Schools

The following is a table listing the individuals that have held the position of "chief executive officer of Chicago Public Schools" since it was created in 1995:

Name		Tenure	Citation
	Paul Vallas	1995—2001	[2][20]
	Arne Duncan	2001—2009	[20]
	Ron Huberman	2009—2010	[20]
	Terry Mazany (interim)	2010—2011	[20]
	Jean-Claude Brizard	2011—2012	[20]
	Barbara Byrd-Bennett	2012—2015	[20]
	Jesse Ruiz (interim)	2015	[21][22]
	Forrest Claypool	2015—2017
	Janice K. Jackson	2017—2021
	José Torres (interim)	2021	[23]
	Pedro Martinez	2021–2024	[24][1]

References

1. Karp, Sarah; Issa, Nader (December 20, 2024). "CPS School Board Votes to Fire CEO Pedro Martinez". WBEZ. Retrieved December 21, 2024.
2. "History of Chicago Public Schools". Chicago Reporter. Retrieved March 11, 2020.
3. Tarvardian, Arthur Norman (1992). "Battle Over the Chicago Schools: The Superintendency of William Mcandrew". Loyola University Chicago. pp. 1, 13–16, 18–20, 22–23, 30–31, 40, 50–51, 220. Retrieved March 11, 2020.
4. Stringer, Kate (March 6, 2018). "Meet Ella Flagg Young, First Female School Superintendent of a Major U.S. City — and Ed Reform's Forgotten Thought Leader". Retrieved August 29, 2021.
5. History of Chicago, Illinois. v.2. Chicago and New York City: Munsell & co. pp. 89, 102–108.
6. James, Michael. "The Chicago Board of Education Desegregation Policies and Practices [1975-1985]: A Historical Examination of the Administrations of Superintendents Dr. Joseph P. Hannon and Dr. Ruth Love". Loyola University Chicago. Retrieved March 11, 2020.
7. Moses, John; Kirkland, Joseph (1895). History of Chicago, Illinois Volume 2. Munsell & Company. pp. 105–109.
8. Bright, Orville T. (December 1906). "Albert G. Lane (1841-1906)". The Elementary School Teacher. 7 (4): 177–181. doi:10.1086/453614. S2CID 143376356.
9. "E. Benjamin Andrews". www.hetwebsite.net. History of Economic Thought. Retrieved March 11, 2020.
10. "Education: Superintendent in Chicago". Time. May 4, 1936.
11. Thompson, John (March 15, 1947). "N.C.A. Body Asks City Schools Be Discredited". Newspapers.com. Chicago Tribune. Retrieved August 16, 2021.
12. "N.C.A. ACCREDITS SCHOOLS, DROPS 15 MONTH THREAT". Newspapers.com. Chicago Tribune. June 29, 1947. Retrieved August 16, 2021.
13. "WHY THE LAST 8 SUPERINTENDENTS HAVE LEFT". chicagotribune.com. Chicago Tribune. November 6, 1992. Retrieved March 11, 2020.
14. "Interim Superintendent Named in Chicago". Newspapers.com. The Decatur Daily Review. The Associated Press. August 25, 1966. Retrieved October 30, 2021.
15. Heard, Jacquelyn (February 2, 1993). "CITY SCHOOLS GO TO RANKS TO FIND AN INTERIM CHIEF". chicagotribune.com. Chicago Tribune. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
16. Bryk, Anthony (2018). Charting Chicago School Reform: Democratic Localism As A Lever For Change. Routledge. p. 365. ISBN 978-0-429-97029-0. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
17. "Richard E. Stephenson, Jr.'s Biography". The HistoryMakers. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
18. Heard, Jacquelyn (August 7, 1994). "HER 1ST YEAR A LESSON FOR SCHOOLS CHIEF". chicagotribune.com. Chicago Tribune. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
19. Gittell, Marilyn (1998). Strategies for School Equity: Creating Productive Schools in a Just Society. Yale University Press. p. 222. ISBN 978-0-300-14654-7. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
20. "Graphic: Timeline of Chicago Public Schools CEOs". chicagotribune.com. Chicago Tribune. June 2, 2015. Retrieved March 11, 2020.
21. "Ruiz Takes Charge at CPS, Suspends SUPES Contract, Halts No-Bid Deals". DNAinfo Chicago. Archived from the original on June 4, 2020. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
22. Spielman, Fran (February 18, 2019). "Rahm's agency heads could outlast him thanks to golden parachute contracts". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
23. Koumpilova, Mila (June 30, 2021). "José Torres poised to start as interim Chicago schools CEO on an open-ended contract". Chalkbeat Chicago. Retrieved July 8, 2021.
24. "New Chicago Public Schools CEO, Chicago's Top Doctor Address COVID Safety Protocols". ABC 7 Chicago. WLS-TV. Retrieved September 30, 2021.