On this episode of CTU Speaks!, co-hosts Andrea Parker and Jim Staros bring a crew into the studio from the We Care New Teachers/Clinicians Coaching and Mentoring Program, which is a union-led, CTU initiative in partnership with CPS. We Care provides mentoring and support to educators in their first three years to help them navigate the various cha…

On this episode of CTU Speaks!, co-hosts Tara Stamps and Jim Staros invite David Stovall, professor of criminology, law, and justice at the University of Illinois-Chicago, into the studio for a discussion of the outlandish things Paul Vallas has said about teaching Black history. This is an informative deep dive into the explicit and not-so-explici…

On this episode of CTU Speaks!, co-hosts Tara Stamps and Jim Staros welcome three out-of-town guests to our Chicago studio to discuss the devastation that Paul Vallas wrought in the cities where they live. Shakeda Gaines is an education activist and advocate from Philadelphia, Melissa Francis is a parent union organizer with Step Up for Action in N…

In this episode, co-hosts Andrea Parker and Tara Stamps dive into Brandon Johnson’s past by interviewing three of Mr. Johnson’s former 7th grade students — Shakyra Williams, Malik Savage, and Dequandre Williams — and his former co-worker Pat Wade. Along with Tara, they were all at Jenner Academy for the Arts when Brandon taught there. Together, the…