CPS Reinstates Transportation Services for Young Children

Chicago children who are enrolled in Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE) are finally entitled to receive comprehensive transportation services, thanks to two years of advocacy led by Legal Council and our partners at The Ounce of Prevention Fund and Legal Aid Chicago.

Chicago Public Schools (CPS), under instruction from the Illinois State Board of Education, has reinstated its former policy of providing transportation to and from these Pre-K students’ homes, their assigned schools, and their Head Start programs. But this victory expands access to transportation beyond Head Start programs to all Chicago community-based childcare. All children placed in ECSE classrooms can now access these services. Working parents will no longer have to choose between the community childcare that is essential to their ability to hold down a job and the specialized services that are essential to their children’s education. 

Parents who need transportation between home, school, and child care should be sure to ask their child’s case manager to complete the revised “Purple Form” and submit it to the CPS transportation department.