Sign up for Chalkbeat Chicago’s free daily newsletter to keep up with the latest news on Chicago Public Schools.The Chicago Board of Education picked Karime Asaf, who oversees English learner programming at Chicago Public Schools, on Thursday to be the district’s next chief education officer.As chief education officer, Asaf will be responsible for overseeing the district’s academic vision for schools. The position has been without a permanent leader since last June, when then-chief Bogdana Chkoumbova resigned. Alfonso Carmona, former chief portfolio officer at CPS, was serving as the interim until earlier this month.Asaf, who was once an English learner student at Senn High School after emigrating from Colombia, has worked in education for more than 30 years, including as a network chief and bilingual and special education teacher at CPS, according to her biography online. She became the chief of the Office of Multilingual and Multicultural Education in 2023. “I have learned how important it is to treat people with dignity,” Asaf said shortly after she was hired. “Even during difficult conversations, it’s important to me to stay respectful. As a learning leader, my role is to invite people in, open space for collaboration and innovation, and inspire their creativity and imagination.”One of her focuses has been to open more dual and world language programs. Under her tenure, the district updated its bilingual education policy with multiple clarifications, including that an English learner’s neighborhood school must provide them with language support even if the school hasn’t provided such support before. Asaf’s tenure has intersected with major issues that impact English learners. She began in the position about a year after Texas Gov. Greg Abbott began busing thousands of migrant families from Central and South America to Chicago and other Democratic-led cities. She’s also been at the helm as the Trump administration has stepped up immigration enforcement and deportation campaigns. On Thursday, she said her office helped create safety protocols at schools in the face of immigration enforcement.At Thursday’s board meeting, during a presentation on academic progress, Asaf highlighted the district’s creation of a migrant welcome center in 2023 at Clemente High School in Humboldt Park, which she said has become a hub for providing additional support to newcomer families. Board members Debby Pope and Carlos Rivas praised Asaf and the district’s work as the migrant crisis unfolded, including working to enroll newly arrived children.But as many newcomers who were learning English as a new language enrolled in schools that historically haven’t enrolled English learners, the district struggled to educate these children adequately, Chalkbeat and Block Club Chicago found in 2024. Last year, Chalkbeat and Block Club found that while the district’s share of bilingual teachers grew by more than 20% since the pandemic, schools were still struggling to provide legally required bilingual education to students who require it. Asaf has said her office was concerned about areas in the city without English learner services but that creating robust bilingual programs takes time. On Thursday, she also pointed to a guidebook meant to help educators serve English learners. Under Asaf, the share of English learners who have met their growth targets toward proficiency in English increased by about 1 percentage point — from 27.5% of English learners in the 2023-24 school year to 28.3% last school year, according to district data. The graduation rate among English learners has remained largely the same at just over 76% compared with 84% of students who aren’t English learners. Reema Amin is a reporter covering Chicago Public Schools. Contact Reema at ramin@chalkbeat.org.
