|
It’s April Fools’ Day, so be vigilant when reading the news and scrolling online today. While there are no pranks or goofs in this newsletter, there are several fact-based, reported stories about Chicago from WTTW News. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
(WTTW News) |
|
The Chicago Teachers Union announced a tentative contract agreement this morning with Chicago Public Schools officials, capping nearly a year of tense negotiations that pitted union leaders allied with Mayor Brandon Johnson against CPS CEO Pedro Martinez.
CTU leaders called the four-year deal a “historic achievement” that represented the fulfillment of promises Johnson made to transform CPS into a school district that offers a well-rounded education to every Chicago child and security to its employees.
What happens next:
A group of several dozen educators who helped negotiate the contract, known as CTU’s big bargaining team, endorsed the proposed deal, sending it to the union’s 730-member House of Delegates for approval. If the agreement wins the support of a majority of the delegates, the agreement will go to the union’s nearly 30,000 members for ratification.
The agreement must also be approved by the 21-member, partially elected Chicago Board of Education, which must also figure out how to pay for the deal.
More backstory:
The tentative agreement represents the first time in 15 years that the union’s leadership, the Caucus of Rank-and-file Educators, known as CORE, has reached an agreement without first taking a strike vote. In 2012, CTU went on strike for seven days. In 2016, a late-night agreement averted a second walkout under former Mayor Rahm Emanuel. In 2019, an 11-day strike followed the breakdown of negotiations with former Mayor Lori Lightfoot.
What's in it?
The proposed contract includes raises for teachers, more services for the district’s most vulnerable students and protects the academic freedoms of CPS educators amid attacks from the Trump Administration.
Under the terms of the agreement, teachers will see raises of 4% to 7.5% in the first year and 4% to 8.5% each during the remaining three years of the deal, depending on their level of education and tenure.
CTU leaders also said the contract will expand services offered to special education, bilingual and unhoused students; expands sports programming as well as the number of libraries and librarians; increases access to career and technical education opportunities; and includes investments in green technology for school buildings. A final cost was not immediately available. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
Wisconsin Supreme Court candidates Brad Schimel and Susan Crawford participate in a debate Wednesday, March 12, 2025, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo / Morry Gash) |
|
Chicago-area abortion providers and organizations that support people seeking reproductive care, such as the Chicago Abortion Fund, are among those nationwide closely watching Tuesday’s Wisconsin Supreme Court race and how it could impact abortion access in the state.
The results of the Wisconsin election will determine whether the court will remain under 4-3 liberal control or flip to a conservative majority, serving as an indicator of who could hold power over the fate of legal cases regarding abortion in the state.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court is currently deciding whether to revive an abortion ban from 1849, which criminalizes “the willful killing of an unborn quick child.”
What that could mean:
Chicago-area abortion providers and abortion fund groups have already been seeing more people from Wisconsin traveling to Illinois to seek abortions after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.
Before Roe v. Wade was overturned, abortion care provider Family Planning Associates Medical Group in the West Loop saw an average of 33 patients from Wisconsin per month. Right after the decision, that number nearly tripled to 115 Wisconsin patients per month after abortion health care services became unavailable in the state.
“If the Wisconsin Supreme Court has a conservative majority, there is a prediction, that I think is pretty accurate, that abortion providers in Wisconsin will be further restricted in the care that they can provide,” said Dr. Allison Cowett, the group’s medical director. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
Crews prepare to clean up the site of Chicago’s NASCAR race weekend on July 8, 2024. (WTTW News) |
|
NASCAR officials have announced their traffic plan for the Chicago Street Race course, and, not surprisingly for a sport that emphasizes speed, set-up and tear-down will take fewer days than in 2024.
The process — start to finish — has been nearly halved since the inaugural race in 2023, when build-up and take-down took 43 days in and around Grant Park. In 2025, the number of days has been trimmed to 25. Among the efficiencies: Consolidation of premium hospitality areas, and the adjustment of load-in/load-out locations.
Changes were designed to keep Grant Park open to the public to the greatest extent possible and to reduce street closures and parking restrictions in areas surrounding the course. Pre-race activity won't start until June 16, with race weekend set for July 5-6.
“The city of Chicago has been working with NASCAR in the planning and execution of the 2025 race to further minimize the impact to residents and visitors,” Frank Velez, acting executive director of the Office of Emergency Management and Communications, said in a statement. |
|
|
|
|
|
More From WTTW News |
-
Currently running at Chicago Shakespeare, Marc Vitali reviews the rousing “Sunny Afternoon,” which brings the volume – and tender touch – of Ray Davies and the Kinks.
-
A $25 million reconstruction project to improve accessibility at the Green Line’s Austin station on the West Side is underway amid broader funding uncertainty that stands in the way of efforts to make all rail stations on the Chicago Transit Authority fully accessible by 2038.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Back in the Day: April 1, 1866 - Sophonisba Breckinridge, First Woman to Graduate from the University of Chicago Law School, Born |
|
On this date 159 years ago today — April 1, 1866 — educator and social work pioneer Sophonisba Breckinridge was born in Kentucky. In 1901, she became the first woman to receive a Ph.D. in political science and the first in economics from the University of Chicago. Three years later, she became the first woman to graduate from the Law School in 1904. As a professor at U. of C., she turned her attention to social issues, becoming involved with the Jane Addams Hull House and helping form the Chicago Women’s Trade Union League and the Chicago Chapter of the NAACP. She was instrumental in developing what is now known as the Crown School of Social Work, retired in 1942 and died in 1948. The list of “firsts” she accomplished is too long to lay out in full in one blurb. |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
This Week’s Staff Recommendations: Craft Breweries |
|
Every Tuesday, WTTW News staffers highlight their favorite things around Chicago.
Matt Masterson: Springtime is finally here and, while it might not feel like it this week, porches and patios are opening back up and what better way to celebrate than by enjoying a locally-made beer or two. I happen to live just off of Malt Row, so I have ample access nearby, but in case you’re on the lookout for a new place to try, here are some of my favorite breweries.
Begyle & Dovetail: I put these together in one spot because they’re located a block apart just off the Irving Park Brown Line, but in terms of the beer offerings, they couldn’t be further apart. Begyle offers pretty much any style of beer you could want (with a focus on pale ales and IPAs) while Dovetail is lagers, lagers and more lagers (hefeweizens, dunkels, helles, pils … on and on) and they’re the best at making those styles in the city.
Both locations are more than worthy of a trip on their own, but what sets them further apart are the joint events they hold throughout the year. Oktoberfestiversary in the fall and Mayfestiversary in the spring are among the top beer events in Chicago each year.
Demo Brewing: One of Malt Row’s newest additions, this Ravenswood microbrewery has a cozy bar, plenty of games available and a constantly rotating list of offerings running the gamut from lagers and wheat beers to bold stouts and hazy IPAs. A great spot to post up on a summer weekend.
Off Color Brewing: A brewery that famously avoids any and all IPAs, Off Color specializes in just about everything else: fruit-forward wild ales and goses (Beer For Tacos is a personal favorite), saisons, stouts and easy-sipping lagers. Off Color’s Mousetrap taproom in Lincoln Park is always a fun and lively spot that offers tours and tastings.
Revolution Brewing: Still the gold standard for Chicago breweries, Revolution may have closed its Milwaukee Avenue brewpub last year, but its Avondale taproom remains among the best spots in the city. Barrel-aged stouts aren’t always for everyone, but no brewery in the city does them better than Revolution. That’s not all they make, of course, and the taproom is a huge spot that’s great for big groups.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Baseball is back. The NHL, NBA, MLS, NWSL and college basketball are still playing too. What's your favorite Chicago sports memory? |
|
|
|
Email DailyChicagoan@wttw.com with your responses and your answers might be published.
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
5:30 PM | 10:00 PM |
|
|
|
|
Want more WTTW News content? Follow WTTW on Instagram to check in with us daily, go behind-the-scenes, and more. |
|
Newsletter Producer: Josh Terry |
|
|
|
|
