CICS School Finances
Fiscal Scorecard
Each year, Chicago Public Schools rates all charter schools on several key metrics of financial health. CICS’ most recent available scorecard is linked here:
Annual Budget
The CICS fiscal year runs from July 1 to June 30 of the following year. Our most recently completed fiscal year was FY23, which ended on June 30, 2023. Our total budget in FY23 was approximately $118M. We are projecting a similar budget total in FY24.
How We Operate
Unique Governance Structure
Unique Governance Structure. Overseeing a network of campuses managed by School Management Organizations (SMOs), CICS serves communities with diverse school models that are each held accountable through our portfolio structure - and as documented in our operator contracts - that defines what autonomies operators and campuses have while meeting academic, operational and financial outcomes. In addition to oversight and accountability, the CICS network provides support and services to our SMOs and campuses. This structure allows CICS to deliver rigorous, innovative and successful educational programs, and at the same time, offer a diverse portfolio of high-quality options to all families who choose to attend our schools and whom we have the privilege to serve. Our structure also allows for decision-making to be made at the campus level, as close to the school community as possible, while centralized functions support all our campuses by leveraging economies of scale.
Sources of Funding
The information linked below breaks down the various sources of our revenue for each of our campuses. The majority of CICS funding is publicly funded via city, state, and federal funding, mostly based on per-pupil formulas, as well as our student poverty index. About 2% of our funds are privately raised; we receive minimal amounts from student fees and other sources.
Access to , , and Revenue charts
Primary Expenditures
The financial information provided indicates how CICS spent our funds in FY21, FY22 and FY23.
- Salaries and Related Costs: All costs associated with the teachers and administrators who run the school, including benefits and payroll taxes.
- Facilities and Related Costs: All costs related to maintaining our campus buildings such as rent, insurance, maintenance, etc.
- Administrative Fees: All costs related to supporting our campuses with services such as human resources, student recruitment and enrollment, staff recruitment and retention, accounting and auditing, technology, communications, operations, etc.
- Supplies and Other Costs: All costs related to curriculum, classroom supplies, educational materials, etc.
- Student Programming Costs: Related to enrichment opportunities, special events (graduation, prom, etc.), student incentives, etc.
Capital Expenses are large investments we make in our facilities, equipment, and technology - e.g. boiler replacement, HVAC unit upgrades, roofing, and parking lot repairs.
Access to , , and Expenditure charts
Other Information
Our public copy of the 990 and annual audit report are available upon request.
Please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and we will send the file(s) to you within five business days (during the academic year - please expect a delay during school breaks when staffing is minimal).
