Kate Armanini

Kate Armanini is an education reporter for the Tribune. She previously interned on the Tribune's metro desk and covered breaking news for The Boston Globe. Armanini is a graduate of Northeastern University.

Students head toward the main entrance of The Chicago High School for the Arts on West Augusta Boulevard on March 3, 2026, following a press conference demanding that CPS stop its current transition plan for the school. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)

ChiArts families, teachers protest proposed changes to conservatory model

March 4, 2026 at 6:26 p.m.

Next year, Chicago Public Schools will assume management of Chicago High School for the Arts and its current conservatory model will likely change.

Lui Sarinan, 17, of Amundsen High School, raises her hand as she listens with her classmates to owner of Vietfive Coffee Anna Huynh, of Garfield Park, during the Office for Students with Disabilities Transition Fair at Malcom X College, Feb. 27, 2026. (Josh Boland/Chicago Tribune)

Chicago Public Schools transition fair helps students with disabilities plan for what’s next

February 27, 2026 at 11:22 p.m.

Chicago Public Schools hosted the Transition Fair, a two-day event that connects students with disabilities to post-secondary opportunities.

Special education teacher Jenny Gatz rallies with others outside ASPIRA Business & Finance High School in Chicago on Feb. 26, 2026. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)

CPS to transfer students out of ASPIRA charter network amid financial turmoil

February 26, 2026 at 4:32 p.m.

Chicago Public Schools will begin transferring about 540 students from two high schools in the ASPIRA charter network facing midyear closure.

Cindi Camacho has taught at the ASPIRA Business & Finance High School for eight years. The school, in the Avondale neighborhood, is one of two high schools that may have to close next month as the charter operator is facing bankruptcy. (E. Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune)

Families, teachers in limbo as ASPIRA charter schools face closure

February 22, 2026 at 4:54 p.m.

The charter network ASPIRA has announced it is facing a $4.8 million deficit, and could be forced to shutter its three schools in March.

Former Chicago Public Schools Chief Executive Officer Pedro Martinez speaks with members of the press at CPS headquarters on March 31, 2025, in Chicago. An outside firm hired to find a permanent replacement for Martinez is withdrawing from the process. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)

CPS board members accuse Mayor Brandon Johnson of ‘sabotage’ in CEO search

February 12, 2026 at 6:50 p.m.

A group of six Chicago Public Schools board members blasted Mayor Brandon Johnson on Thursday, accusing City Hall of sabotaging a professional search for a new head of the school...

Claire Jakubiszyn, director and founder of Blazing Star School, works with students on pen and ink impressions on Feb. 5, 2026. Blazing Star is a microschool in Chicago, enrolling almost two dozen children, ages 5 to 14. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)

‘Free the kids’: Why more Chicago families are turning to homeschooling

February 11, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Homeschooling has burst from the ideological fringe to the center of Chicago’s education landscape.

U.S. Education Secretary Linda McMahon heads into a news conference at Chicago Hope Academy on Feb. 5, 2026, in Chicago. McMahon and administration officials are visiting schools in 50 states to promote their "History Rocks!" initiative. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)

Education Secretary Linda McMahon visits Near West Side private school

February 5, 2026 at 9:56 p.m.

Education Secretary Linda McMahon addressed students at a private Christian high school, her latest stop on a controversial, national civics tour.

An illustration, posted by Illini Republicans on Instagram, depicts what appears to be a federal agent pointing a gun at a man's head. The group has said it stands with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. (Illini Republicans)

U. of I. Republicans club faces backlash for post supporting ICE: ‘Only traitors help invaders’

February 2, 2026 at 6:15 p.m.

The Illini Republicans club at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is facing backlash after posting an illustration on social media of a masked gunman holding a weapon to a...

Chicago Teachers Union President Stacy Davis Gates, center, speaks at a news conference at CTU headquarters in Chicago on April 1, 2025, . flanked by CTU Vice President Jackson Potter, left, and CTU Deputy General Council Thad Goodchild. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)

CTU alleges rival union conspired with the boss in fight over low-wage CPS employees

January 30, 2026 at 5:32 p.m.

The Chicago Teachers Union has accused the Chicago Board of Education of conspiring with a rival union to undermine its bargaining unit.

The former Paderewski Elementary School, 2221 S. Lawndale Ave., on Jan. 29, 2026. The school board voted unanimously in favor of its sale at its January meeting. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)

Chicago Public Schools approves buyers for two more closed buildings

January 29, 2026 at 6:33 p.m.

CPS approved the sale of two closed schools Thursday, which will be repurposed into affordable housing and an athletic facility.

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