Paul Vallas

American politician and school administrator

Paul Gust Vallas (born June 10, 1953) is an American civil servant and politician. He is a Democrat.

Paul Vallas
CEO of Chicago Public Schools
In office
July 10, 1995 – June 26, 2001
Appointed byRichard M. Daley
Preceded byArgie Johnson (as Superintendent)
Succeeded byArne Duncan
Other offices held
Chief Administrative Officer of Chicago State University
In office
April 2017 – January 2019
Superintendent of Bridgeport Public Schools
In office
January 1, 2012 – November 8, 2013a
Superintendent of the Recovery School District of Louisiana
In office
2007–2011
CEO of the School District of Philadelphia
In office
July 2002 – June 2007
Personal details
Born
Paul Gust Vallas

(1953-06-10) June 10, 1953 (age 71)
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse(s)Sharon Vallas
Children3
EducationMoraine Valley Community College
Western Illinois University (BA, MA)
Signature

He was the superintendent of many schools across the United States. Some of those schools are in Philadelphia, New Orleans, Bridgeport, and Cook County.[1]

He ran for governor and lietenant governor. He ran for Mayor of Chicago twice, once in 2019 and again in 2023 election.

CEO of Chicago Public Schools

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Vallas was CEO of the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) from 1995 to 2001.[2] He was hired by Mayor Richard M. Daley.[2]

During his time at CPS, Vallas tried to fix the school system. President Bill Clinton said his work for raising test scores,[3] balancing the budget, creating several new programs, including mandatory summer school and after-school programs was a model for the country.[4]

In June 2001, Vallas announced his resignation. His resignation came soon after several failing standardized testing scores.[5] Vallas's was CEO for six years. Thaat was more than twice the average time for school superintendents in large U.S. cities in the 1990s.[6]

Political career

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In 2002, Vallas ran for Governor, but lost the primary.[7][8] Vallas ran for Lieutenant Governor of Illinois in 2014 with incumbent Governor Pat Quinn, but lost the election to Bruce Rauner and Evelyn Sanguinetti.[9]

Vallas helped rebuild Haiti's school system after the 2010 earthquake in Haiti.[10][11]

Running for mayor

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In March 2018, Vallas ran in the 2019 Chicago mayoral election against Rahm Emanuel.[12] He lost the election in the first-round of voting.

In June 2022, Vallas announced his candidacy for mayor again in the 2023 election.[13][14] In February 2023, Vallas came in first place in the first round of voting and advanced to the April run-off election, facing Brandon Johnson.[15] Johnson would go on to win the run-off election.[16]

Running for governor

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Vallas ran for Governor of Illinois in 2002, but he lost the Democratic nomination. In 2014, he was the Lieutenant Governor of Illinois Democratic nominee. However, lost the general election.

Personal life

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Vallas was born in Chicago and grew up in the Roseland neighborhood on Chicago's South Side. He spent his teen years living in Palos Heights. He went to Moraine Valley Community College and then graduated from Western Illinois University, where he received a bachelor's degree in history and political science, a master's degree in political science, and a teaching certificate.[17]

Vallas is married to Sharon Vallas and they have three sons. One son died of an opioid overdose.[18]

References

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  1. Marin, Carol (2009-02-04). "Vallas targets County Board run". Chicago Sun-Times. Archived from the original on 2009-02-07. Retrieved 2009-02-08.
  2. 2.0 2.1 "Schools Aren't Out of Budget Woods Yet". Chicago Tribune.
  3. https://consortium.uchicago.edu/sites/default/files/2018-10/Trends_in_Three_Eras_of_CPS.pdf
  4. "Clinton Calls for End to 'Social Promotion' in Schools". Los Angeles Times. 29 October 1997.
  5. Kening, Dan (June 8, 2001). "Michael Scott named Chicago school board president". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 6 February 2023.
  6. Wilgoren, Jodi (7 June 2001). "Chief Executive of Chicago Schools Resigns". The New York Times. Retrieved 8 March 2023.
  7. Vallas interested in running for Illinois guv, Greg Hinz, Crain's Chicago Business', April 28, 2008
  8. Vallas "open" to run for governor in 2010, David Mendell, Chicago Tribune, April 28, 2008
  9. Moser, Whet (8 November 2013). "Paul Vallas Is With Quinn. But Why Do We Even Have a Lieutenant Governor?". Chicago magazine. Retrieved 8 November 2013.
  10. Times-Picayune, Sarah Carr, The. "Haiti rebuilding effort draws on expertise of RSD Superintendent Paul Vallas". NOLA.com. Retrieved 2022-12-23.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  11. Times-Picayune, Cindy Chang, The (October 4, 2010). "Recovery School District's Vallas aided post-quake reform in Haiti". NOLA.com. Retrieved 30 December 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  12. Former CPS CEO Paul Vallas Officially Files to Run for Mayor
  13. Sneed, Michael (2022-05-28). "Paul Vallas to run for mayor, sources say". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2022-05-31.
  14. "Paul Vallas Announces 2023 Run for Chicago Mayor". NBC Chicago. June 1, 2022.
  15. "Mayor Lori Lightfoot concedes defeat, setting stage for Chicago's mayoral race to be between Brandon Johnson and Paul Vallas". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2023-03-01.
  16. "Chicago Mayor Runoff Election Results". The New York Times. 2023-04-04. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-04-05.
  17. "Paul Vallas - City Club of Chicago". www.cityclub-chicago.org. Retrieved October 23, 2018.
  18. McClelland, Edward Robert (January 20, 2023). "Grading the Mayoral Debate". Chicago Magazine. Retrieved 30 January 2023.

Other websites

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