Choose CICS
Excellence. Equity. Innovation.
CICS’ network of diverse school models enables students to thrive every day, putting them on a path to success in life.
Learn more about our high-performing network of academically rigorous and innovative schools.
Why Choose CICS?
Chicago International Charter School (CICS) combines high expectations with compassionate, individualized support that prepares every student for whatever life path they choose.
- 96% of CICS high school students attend a campus that performs as well or better than their CPS-zoned school in the percentage of students who meet college readiness benchmarks.
- 89% of CICS elementary students attend a school that meets or exceeds the reading and math performance of their CPS-zoned counterpart.
- More than 98% college acceptance rate for students at all CICS high schools.
All CICS schools are tuition free and open to all students who live in the city of Chicago. There are no testing requirements to enroll. Become a part of the CICS family today!
For more information, please call (312) 651-5000 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Rallying around an agenda that supports the advancement of Black and Brown children in his community is what Robert Alexander is all about. Now he’s giving back to the community where it all started for him, as a teacher, at his alma mater, CICS Loomis-Longwood.
National Principals Month honors principals for their significant impact on the success and well-being of our nation’s students.
Join us as we celebrate all CICS principals throughout October!
Check out several of the school principals from our Avalon, Basil, Bucktown, Irving Park, Loomis-Longwood, Lloyd Bond, Northtown Academy, Prairie, Ralph Ellison, Washington Park, West Belden and Wrightwood campuses.
We plan to profile all our principals this week and their journeys to becoming great leaders! We thank them for all they do!
www.principalsmonth.org
www.ChicagoIntl.Org
#ThankAPrincipal #CICSPrincipals #Leaders
WTTW Chicago Tonightrecently profiled CICS Loomis-Longwood on their "In Your Neighborhood" segment.
The segment profiled the Washington Heights neighborhood which is surrounded by the Roseland, Auburn Gresham, Beverly and Morgan Park communities.
The feature showcased CICS Loomis-Longwood and the importance our school serving its student population in the South Side neighborhood. K-5 School Director Lindsey Girard was featured speaking on the reopening of the campus this Fall. For more on this feature and to view one of our campuses, click here.
Teachers change lives and inspire thousands every day even while facing all of the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic. We want to thank them! We want to celebrate Teacher Appreciation Week, which runs from May 3 through May 7 in 2021, by spotlighting teachers this week who have made a difference at CICS. One educator, Brandi Pearman, embodies that. Ms. Pearman was awarded the Essential Educator of the Year in April 2020. She was celebrated for her teaching during remote learning and her continued dedication to educating her students about Science, Technology, Engineering and Math. Read her inspiring story.
Brandi Pearman is a first grade STEM teacher at CICS Lloyd Bond. She is also a member of the Phi Kappa Omega Chapter of the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority. She joined the sorority on May 5, 2002 while she was a graduate student at Eastern Michigan University; it is a family legacy as her grandmother joined in 1945 and her mother was also a member. The Phi Kappa Omega Chapter’s motto is “Service to All Mankind” and for Ms. Pearman, “That mindset doesn’t stop at age 22 when you get your degree.” This motto is something that she embodies while a teacher at Bond and in life.
Alpha Kappa Alpha is one of the sororities and fraternities that comprise the National Pan-Hellenic Black Greek letter organizations that are often referred to as the Divine Nine. The history of these service organizations date back to the early 1900’s. The organizations were founded at five universities including Morgan State and Howard University, both HBCUs (Historically Black Colleges and Universities).
Ms. Pearman is currently focused on two of the organizations’ program targets, those of the Arts and Global Impact. She has been involved in projects such as Soles4Souls, an organization that turns unwanted shoes and clothing into opportunity and has collected dresses for little girls and in a Vision Fair eyeglass drive for children. This year, Ms. Pearman is a part of the Chapter’s annual book drive with Lloyd Bond designated as one of the schools that will receive books.
As a first grade STEM teacher, Ms. Pearman isn’t in a position to talk to her students about the sorority but it does influence the perspectives she brings to her students. Her class has more young girls than boys and she makes sure that the girls are participating in everything to do with math and science. “I don’t ever bring up the idea that math is stereotypically a boy’s subject. I push a narrative of inclusion and I make it relevant to their lives. I want them to understand that telling time, counting money, buying things and baking cookies are all math-based.” The tight community of teachers at Lloyd Bond also ensures that her themes and messaging are carried into the next grade level.
Ms. Pearman is also a part of the schools’ Parent Involvement team. She worked on the Parent Playbook and Parent University, a way to learn new skills that will help them support their children in remote learning. Last fall, Ms. Pearman participated in a live Facebook Panel with and for parents. The Pink Table Talk, sponsored by the sorority, offered tricks and treats for managing in a virtual learning environment and addressed some of the challenges that mothers in particular were facing in remote learning. Ms. Pearman was able to bring her perspectives both as a teacher and as a parent of a second-grade boy. “Now, more than ever, we have put more effort into investing in building strong relationships with our parents.” Ms. Pearman believes that these relationships are an integral piece of why her young students have thrived and will continue to do so when students are able to return to in-person learning. Brandi's passion for service and education is what she believes makes students and families a cohesive unit
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This week, the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) unveiled its latest Illinois School Report Card summative designations, which are designed to help school communities better understand how well a school is serving its students. The designations are a key component of Illinois’ school accountability system and they allow networks, like CICS, to understand better our strengths, areas for growth, and performance of all public schools across Illinois.
Rita Ponce’s son, Mateo, (virtually) graduated from kindergarten this year at CICS’ West Belden campus. Mateo is a bright, energetic and curious young boy who always wants to learn and is ahead of the curve for someone his age. She offered some insight into Mateo’s first year at West Belden–one filled with growth, opportunity, challenges and unchartered territory.
What I Learned from CICS Wrightwood Still Applies to Me Today
I have now been at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Law School for over two years! As a native south side Chicago African-American woman, and CICS Wrightwood graduate, I have come a long way from home.
Since I started law school in the fall of 2019, I’ve learned about myself and the legal profession. Although law school is unlike any other schooling I have experienced, my ease at transitioning to law school can be attributed to my experiences as a student at CICS Wrightwood.
