WBEZ15%
Mayor Brandon Johnson answers questions about CPS funding, selecting a new CPS chief and building community 46%
By WBEZ Staff0%
7/16/2026, 10:30:00 AM
BS Summary: This article contains 20 faulty reasoning types, including Anecdotal, Negativity Bias, and Indoctrination, with Appeal to Emotion as the most egregious example at 21% saturation with 111 hits. Analysis detected 813 faulty-reasoning hits from 528 analyzed words, generating a BS Score of 48.1% and a BS Rank of 46% (9,419 of 17,279 articles). This article is better (less manipulative) than 54.50% of the article peer group.
Mayor Brandon Johnson is returning to WBEZ 91.5 on Thursday to answer listener questions live on the morning talk show “In the Loop” with host Sasha-Ann Simons.
With the news that Chicago Public Schools plans to lay off 760 teachers, 801 teacher aides and 162 other staff, Johnson reiterated his call for more state funding for the district.
"We have a school district that is woefully underfunded by the state of Illinois," he told "In the Loop."
"The structure that the state of Illinois passed in 2017 called for an equity-based funding structure, the law committed to fully funding our schools across the state by 2027, and here we are approaching 2027.
The state has not come through.
$1.6 billion is what the district rightfully deserves, based upon the funding formula mechanism that the state passed."
The Chicago Teachers Union, members of the Board of Education and other officials called for a special session in Springfield to address education funding.
State leaders have so far rejected those requests.
Meanwhile, Chicago Police Department Supt.
Larry Snelling's last day with CPD has passed, with interim boss Fred Waller taking over.
Johnson strongly opposed the idea that whoever wins next year's mayoral election should select the new police superintendent, comparing it to how some would not allow former President Barack Obama to select a U.S.
Supreme Court justice during his final year in office.
As for what Johnson is looking for from the next permanent superintendent: "We still need leadership that is willing to partner with community.
We still have to restore trust, and that helps when you build the morale of our police department.
But we also have to keep this in mind: that policing in and of itself is not the way to build safe and affordable communities."
Some callers asked the mayor about how to build community in the city.
Tracy in the Woodlawn neighborhood said community to her means face-to-face interactions, and a lot more effort seems to be placed on children, rather than adults.
She asked what is being done to help adults develop community.
"When I think about community, it's about our shared values," Johnson replied.
"And if there aren't community organizations that exist in your space, you know, this could be a little risky, but I think that there are shared spaces that we can organize people around.
That's what I did when I was an organizer.
We had meetings in church basements, talking about schools, talking about the senior bill of rights, talking about healthcare, and so I would just encourage you to take a little bit of a risk, where the people who are closest to you are people you would like to to meet and engage with.
Try it out, and build that."
WBEZ’s “In the Loop” connects you with the people behind the stories: experts, neighbors and newsmakers who shape the city we share.
For more on “In the Loop” and to listen to their segments, visit their website .
You can also listen to the show on Spotify or the WBEZ app .
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