SEIU Illinois State Council Endorses Jessica Biggs for CPS Board President
The SEIU Illinois State Council (ISC) announced today its endorsement of Jessica Biggs for President of the Chicago Public Schools Board of Education. Biggs currently serves as the Board of Education member representing District 6B.
"Our members are there working to educate and protect CPS students every day, and we know what real investment in students looks like. Jessica Biggs has lived that work — as a teacher, as a principal who turned a struggling school around, and now as a Board member. She doesn't just talk about equity, she's built it, school by school and block by block on the Southwest Side. SEIU Local 73 is proud to stand behind her candidacy for Board President," said Dian Palmer, President, SEIU Local 73.
"What sets Jessica Biggs apart is that she's never stopped being a builder of coalitions — between schools, health providers, and families who need both to thrive. That's exactly the kind of leadership CPS needs at the helm of its Board. She has our full support to lead as President," said Trumaine Reeves, Executive Vice President, SEIU Local 73.
"Jessica Biggs has spent her career in the classrooms, hallways, and communities of Chicago Public Schools, and that experience shows in how she leads. She understands that a strong Board of Education has to listen to educators, parents, and the neighborhoods our schools serve. All of our students deserve the opportunity to succeed, and all of our communities deserve schools that are well-resourced, supported, and responsive to their needs. That’s why SEIU Illinois State Council is proud to endorse her for President of the CPS Board. We know she’ll fight to deliver the resources and leadership our students and communities deserve,” said Greg Kelley, President, SEIU Illinois State Council.
“I am humbled to have earned the endorsement of the SEIU Illinois State Council, representing thousands of workers people across our city,” said Jessica Biggs, Candidate for Board President. “As CPS Board President, I will be a true partner to SEIU to make sure the SEIU members who serve our school communities have the support they need and deserve.”
Biggs has spent two decades working in and around Chicago Public Schools — first as an outreach coordinator at Senn High School, then as a special education teacher focused on early literacy, and later as principal of Burke Elementary School in Washington Park, where she partnered with staff and the community to move the school from probation to Good Standing. She currently directs Healthy Southwest and the Southwest System of Care through the Southwest Organizing Project, building coalitions between healthcare providers, behavioral health organizations, schools, and community members to close the racial life expectancy gap on the Southwest Side.
In addition, the following candidates have been endorsed for CPS Board of Education:
Ed Bannon, District 1A
Claudia Peralta, District 1B
Ebony DeBerry, District 2A
Norma Rios-Sierra, District 3A
Carlos Rivas, District 3B
Ellen Sherratt, District 4A
Ellen Rosenfeld, District 4B
Anusha Thotakura, District 6A
Jesus Ayala, Jr., District 7A
Yesenia Lopez, District 7B
Angel Gutierrez, District 8A
Brittany Preston, District 9A
Therese Boyle, District 9B
Che Rhymefest Smith, District 10A
These endorsements reflect the ISC's assessment that these candidates will fight for the resources, staffing, and respect that CPS support workers and the students they serve need to thrive. ISC members interviewed candidates and evaluated their positions on fully funding schools, protecting special education services, ensuring safe staffing levels, and giving frontline workers a real voice in decisions that affect their schools.
ISC says it will mobilize its members through phone banking, canvassing, and member-to-member outreach in the weeks leading up to the election to help turn out support for their endorses candidates.
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The SEIU Illinois State Council represents 160,000 Illinois workers in health care, property services and public sectors through SEIU Local 1, SEIU Local 73 and SEIU Healthcare Illinois, Indiana, Missouri and Kansas (SEIU HCIIMK) — the majority of whom are frontline, essential workers.
About SEIU Local 73: SEIU Local 73 represents nearly 15,000 school support workers within Chicago Public Schools, along with tens of thousands of additional public sector, higher education, and healthcare workers across Illinois and Northwest Indiana