Who We Are

Our Mission

The Chicago Public Education Fund (The Fund) is a nonprofit organization that improves public schools in Chicago by investing in the talented educators who lead them. We are a catalyst for accelerating student learning and a long-standing leader in identifying and scaling what works for not only teachers and principals, but also their students.

Our DEIA Commitment

The Fund is deeply committed to advocating for educational equity in Chicago. Our goal is to ensure every Chicago public school student – regardless of ZIP code – can thrive academically, socially, and emotionally by expanding access to high-quality learning environments. 

We believe the best way to do this is by supporting school leaders. We prioritize leaders who serve and represent communities most directly impacted by structural racism and systematic exclusion. 

This work requires a commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and anti-racism (DEIA), and The Fund strives to live this commitment every day through our words, our work, and our actions.

Specifically, we aim to serve our stakeholders in the following ways:

• School Leaders | We ask school leaders what their challenges are and co-create solutions designed to positively impact their students and school communities. Through this partnership, our program and policy work seeks to create the conditions in which current and aspiring principals have the resources and support they need to lead successfully. We specifically focus on recruiting and retaining leaders of color.

   

• Fund Team | We actively recruit and hire for diversity in all areas of identity, including but not limited to race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender expression, and experience. We also work to cultivate a space in which team members feel valued, respected, and appreciated. Our team receives DEIA professional development, which is integrated into strategic planning for our work. 
• Supporters | We collaborate with and include those who bring diverse perspectives that reflect the city we serve. We convene members of the education, philanthropic, nonprofit, corporate, and civic communities around opportunities to support Chicago public school students and leaders. We commit to regularly asking whose voices are missing and seeking out those perspectives.
  

Our work, much like this statement, is always evolving. We won’t always get it right. But we will continue to evaluate our fidelity to and progress against these commitments. As we grow, we will share what we learn and make changes when needed.

Above all, we will continue to recognize and celebrate the plurality of life experiences within Chicago classrooms. Our students, educators, and school leaders are resilient, creative, and full of potential; we are continually learning from and alongside them.

Land Acknowledgement

The Fund’s office is located on the unceded homelands of the Council of Three Fires, comprised of the Ojibwe, Odawa, and Bodéwadmi (Potawatomi) Nations, who are traditionally known as the Neshnabek (Man Sent Down From Above). We also recognize the many other tribes who called this area of Chicago home, including but not limited to the Kiikaapoi (Kickapoo), Peoria, Kaskaskia, and Myaamia (Miami). 

The Fund knows that these and other Native American and Indigenous peoples were and continue to be impacted by historical displacement, colonial settlement, and violence. We celebrate the deep contributions of Native American and Indigenous peoples to our city and community; we support their priorities and traditions; and we commit to listening, learning, and using our voice to ensure an equitable and just future. 

We encourage our partners to visit https://native-land.ca to find the nations who first occupied a given location.