“Sign up for Chalkbeat Chicago’s free daily newsletter to keep up with the latest education news. The Chicago Board of Education plans to vote Wednesday on a resolution urging Gov. JB Pritzker to reject efforts by the Trump administration to support private schools with public funds. Pritzker, a vocal critic of President Donald Trump who is running for reelection as governor, has not yet made a decision about whether to opt Illinois into a federal tax-credit program. The resolution doesn’t explicitly name the new federal tax-credit program, but it denounces Trump administration efforts “to expand and incentivize voucher or publicly funded scholarships for private schools.” It also criticizes private schools as bodies without enough guardrails or public transparency. The federal program would provide dollar-for-dollar tax credits to donors who give up to $1,700 to scholarship-granting nonprofits. In states where the governor opts into the program, those funds can go toward certain expenses for students enrolled in private or public schools (or home-schooled children) whose families make up to 300% of the local median income — or for a Chicago family making roughly $233,000 a year or less. Federal officials have said public schools can also benefit from the program but haven’t solidified rules for how. For example, it’s unclear whether the money could be used for tutoring provided by public schools or be restricted to outside tutoring groups. More than half of U.S. states, mostly run by Republican governors, have opted in. Colorado Gov. Jared Polis is the only Democratic governor to officially do so , while North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein said he plans to in the future. A handful of other Democrats who previously opposed the program said they’re now reconsidering. The board’s resolution argues that “the diversion of public funds for private education weakens not only public schools but other vital public goods and services such as transportation, healthcare and efforts to preserve the environment.” Such a resolution isn’t surprising from Chicago’s school board. Many board members have taken a stance against the Trump administration in other areas, including its deportation campaign in Chicago in the fall and its cancellation of millions of dollars in federal grant funding for CPS . A majority of the board is also aligned with the Chicago Teachers Union, a major ally of Mayor Brandon Johnson, which is staunchly opposed to the program. But there have been some splits among Illinois politicians. Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza, who is considering a run for Chicago mayor this year, called for the state to opt in via an op-ed in the Chicago Tribune. While Pritzker hasn’t announced a decision, he has expressed reservations: He texted Mendoza that governors who haven’t yet opted in “are waiting to understand how much of the money can be used for publics and exactly how states can keep the money from supporting schools that teach values that are racist or antisemitic or anti-American,” according to texts obtained by the Chicago Tribune. For her part, Mendoza wrote in a Tribune op-ed that “rather than funding Trump’s agenda in D.C. or sending more of our dollars to Republican-controlled states already taking advantage of Illinois taxpayers, I would much prefer that an Illinoisan be able to redirect $1,700 to support their own school community.” Some education advocacy groups have asked Pritzker not to opt in. Additionally, the advocacy arm of Illinois Policy Institute, a libertarian-leaning think tank, persuaded more than two dozen Illinois counties and townships to include a non-binding advisory question on their recent primary election ballots about the program. Most of the questions didn’t mention that the program relies on tax credits, and at least one of those counties incorrectly described the program. Still, a majority of voters in places with the ballot question approved of Pritzker opting in, according to a tally of results from Illinois Policy. Most of those counties are suburban or rural areas that voted for Trump in 2024. (Cook County, the state’s largest, and Chicago ballots did not have the advisory question.) The federal program comes three years after Illinois lawmakers allowed a different private school scholarship program to sunset. That program, known as the Invest in Kids scholarship, allowed individuals or corporations to donate to scholarship-granting organizations, which then provided tuition aid to low-income, private school students. Reema Amin is a reporter covering Chicago Public Schools. Contact Reema at ramin@chalkbeat.org.
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