Chicago Public Schools Selects Honorary Student Board of Education Member for 2024-25 School Year

CHICAGO–The Chicago Board of Education (CBOE) Thursday welcomed Clemente High School rising senior, Carolina Carchi, as the Board’s honorary student board member for the 2024-25 school year. Carolina, an International Baccalaureate ambassador and representative for the Leadership Greater Chicago, replaces outgoing Honorary Student Board Member Kate’Lynn Shaw, a Kenwood Academy High School Prep rising senior.

“Being the honorary student board member takes a lot of guts and grit,” said Kate’Lynn. “It takes someone who is dedicated to the growth and development of student voice in our city and around our nation…I can’t wait to see the future of student voice unfold during this upcoming school year.”

Since 1995, the Board and larger District community have benefited from the creation of the honorary student board member position. The role was established to recognize the importance of student voices in public education decisions and since then, honorary student board members have become an integral part of the Board’s mission of providing a high-quality education for Chicago’s youth. 

“The Board continues to build and implement new initiatives that empower students as agents of change for our district.  We need voices like Carolina's to understand the wants and needs of our school communities,” said Chicago Board of Education President Jianan Shi. “As a Board, we are excited to collaborate with Member Carchi on our shared vision of centering student voices, expertise, and lived experiences in our decision-making.”  

As the 2024-2025 honorary student board member, Carolina will:

• Represent the CPS student body at the Chicago Board of Education’s monthly meetings;
• Serve as an appointed member on a District-level student committee; and
• Receive a $1,000 scholarship towards her education at a two- or four-year college or university.

Honorary student board members serve in an advisory capacity and are encouraged to share their perspective, and do not receive voting rights, per the Illinois School Code.

“At CPS, policy without student input is incomplete,” said CPS CEO Pedro Martinez. “We are thrilled to welcome Carolina to the Board as an honorary student member and to work alongside her on important issues and policies that impact students. Congratulations to Carolina on this accomplishment and our deepest thanks to her for her commitment to student advocacy.”

Carolina officially stepped into the role during today’s monthly Chicago Board of Education meeting and she plans to promote engagement among students to inform her advocacy on the  Board and partner with student organizations and groups to ensure all voices are represented. Carolina has been a CPS student for 14 years, a teacher assistant for three years and she has served on her school’s Local School Council.

"In my role as a Student Board Member, I bring empathy and perspective,” said Carolina.  “My knowledge and experiences will provide valuable insights to the challenges that students, teachers, and administrators face within CPS. Together, we can work to implement effective solutions that prioritize the needs of students and support our dedicated educators."

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About Chicago Public Schools (CPS)

Chicago Public Schools (CPS) is dedicated to providing a high-quality education to all students, beginning with the District’s free full-day preschool programming for four-year-old scholars and continuing through neighborhood, magnet and selective-enrollment elementary schools that provide a rigorous K-8 education with schools that specialize in the fine arts, world language and culture, dual language, STEM, International Baccalaureate (IB), classical programs, and more. The rising District-wide freshmen-on-track and high school graduation rates reflect the hard work of the CPS community, including families, staff, and students across 635 schools. CPS celebrates the diversity of its more than 322,000 students who cite 182 home languages. Learn more about CPS at www.cps.edu and connect with CPS on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.