For Immediate Release
Aspira of Illinois Calls for Action to Save the Charter School System
Chicago Public Schools Threatens to Close Aspira in a Matter of Weeks

Chicago, IL – On February 27, 2026, Aspira of Illinois will host a press conference to Call for
Action to stop Chicago Public Schools (CPS) from closing Aspira’s two high schools before the
school year is complete to ensure students graduate and earn credits. The press conference will
take place at Aspira Business & Finance High School located at 2989 N Milwaukee Avenue.
The press conference will be held in the school lobby (1st floor) and will start at 10 AM.

The Aspira Early College and Aspira Business & Finance campuses are the only charter high
schools located in Avondale. They have over 500 students and currently have a deficit of $2.9
million dollars; which is due in part to existing structural inequities, enrollment constraints and
chronic underfunding relative to district-run schools. Aspira has been in talks with CPS officials
for months about the deficit and ways to close the gap. As of last week, CPS has placed Aspira
in a position that has Aspira calling for action to not close the school.

What CPS is doing is unprecedented. Never in the history of Chicago has CPS threatened to
close a school before the end of the school year. The question is, why? Why now? What is
really going on?

“We have been working with CPS for months to deal with the current school deficit. I thought
our meetings were moving in the positive direction, only to be told at the final hour that CPS
will not work with Aspira to keep the schools open for the remainder of the year,” stated Edgar
Lopez, the Chief Executive Officer of Aspira of Illinois.

“I’m very worried about a school closure. We are already facing trauma and fear about
deportation. Losing the safety and stability of Aspira right now would make an already stressful
situation even worse for my children,” stated a concerned parent.

“I’m afraid I’m going to lose my college credits if the school closes,” stated an Aspira Early
College student.

Aspira of Illinois has been around since 1968 and has charter schools within the Chicago Public
Schools system. The vision of Aspira is for all youth to have a seamless educational experience and
be poised to make a difference anywhere in the world. And the mission is to empower the Puerto
Rican and Latino community through advocacy and the education and leadership development of its
youth.

Contact: Melissa M. Batista
773-983-6159
mbatista@aspirail.org