Blaise or Hargrove? What to Know About the District 5B School Board Race

From Garfield Park to Little Village, voters in District 5B will choose between two candidates with very different paths to the school board: an appointed incumbent already casting votes on CPS policy and a longtime CPS employee seeking election to the board for the first time.

Michilla “Kyla” Blaise and Anthony Hargrove are competing to represent a subdistrict that stretches across parts of West Town, the West Loop, Garfield Park, North Lawndale, Pilsen and Little Village.

The question for voters is less about what the school board is and more about what each candidate would do with the seat.

The person elected to represent District 5B will help shape education policies and spending decisions that affect the schools preparing the community’s next generation of students, workers and leaders. 

If you live in District 5B, you will have a say this fall in who represents your community on Chicago’s Board of Education.

You may be wondering: What does the school board actually do? Why does this election matter for my child's school? Does my vote really make a difference? And how do I vote?

You are not the only one asking. Let’s break it down. 

What is District 5B? 

District 5B is one of the 20 subdistricts that make up Chicago’s 10 School Board districts. Each district is divided into an A and B subdistrict, with voters choosing one representative from their respective subdistrict. 

This district includes parts of West Town, West Loop, Garfield Park, North Lawndale, Pilsen, and Little Village. The Board’s school-assignment list places 63 schools in 5B. The district is home to families of diverse cultures, experiences, priorities, and needs, all represented by a single elected board member. 

What does the Board member actually have power over?

The Chicago Board of Education sets districtwide policy and priorities, approves the CPS budget and major contracts, and hires and evaluates the CPS CEO. Board members oversee the school system as a whole rather than managing individual schools or classrooms.

That means the person elected in 5B will not decide every issue at an individual school, but they will cast votes on decisions that can affect schools across the district.

Want a deeper breakdown of who controls principals, school budgets, curriculum, and school closures? Read 15 West’s explainer, “Your Principal, Your School’s Budget, Your Classroom: Who Actually Makes the Decisions?”

What makes the District 5B race worth watching? 

School board elections tend to receive less attention than presidential or citywide races. In 2024, about 79% of ballots cast citywide included a vote in a school board race. But participation varied across the city. The then-5th District, which has since been divided into 5A and 5B, had the lowest school board participation rate among Chicago’s 10 districts, according to WBEZ.

At a Sept. 17 candidate forum, organizers said approximately 62.5% of students in schools assigned to District 5B are Black. Of the 63 schools included in their analysis, 42 had student populations that were at least 75% Black and 21 were at least 90% Black.

Those numbers shaped much of the forum, where candidates were pressed on what representation should mean for Black students, including access to advanced coursework, career pathways, school discipline, and how they would measure whether conditions improve.

So, who is running, and what do they want to change?

This year, District 5B voters will choose between two candidates: appointed board member Michilla “Kyla” Blaise and Anthony Hargrove.

The comparison below is based on candidates’ public statements, campaign materials, records reviewed by 15 West, and their responses at the Sept. 17 District 5B candidate forum.

This side-by-side voter guide is a resource for you to quickly understand who is running and what they want to change. 

Now, why does this matter for my child's school? 

Decisions made by the Board of Education can show up in your child’s everyday school experience.

Will neighborhood-school students have access to the same opportunities?

One issue at the forum was the difference in academic opportunities available across District 5B, which includes neighborhood schools as well as selective-enrollment and magnet schools.

Asked what opportunities available at schools such as Whitney Young or Westinghouse should also be available to Black students attending neighborhood schools, Hargrove said he would explore ways for students to access advanced courses at other schools while also looking for funding to bring more rigorous classes into neighborhood schools.

Blaise pushed back on the idea that 5B neighborhood schools do not already offer strong programs, pointing to Collins Academy's health-care training equipment and Manley High School's aviation program. But she also pointed to a funding disparity: schools with well-resourced parent fundraising groups can raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for additional programs, while many schools cannot.

What should students be prepared for after graduation?

Both candidates said college should not be treated as the only successful path after high school, but they emphasized different ways of expanding career preparation.

Blaise argued that career and technical education programs may require greater investment because programs in areas such as the trades and arts can cost more to operate. She said equitable funding does not necessarily mean giving every program the same amount of money.

Hargrove said career exposure should begin before high school. He called for students to learn about college, trades, entrepreneurship and other careers beginning in elementary school so they have more options as they get older.

What about discipline and student support?

The candidates were also asked how CPS should reduce racial disparities in school discipline without compromising safety.

Blaise pointed to restorative justice, calming spaces, specialized classrooms, and smaller classrooms as tools schools can use to address behavior without relying solely on exclusionary discipline.

Hargrove emphasized clinicians and social-emotional support, including behavior-management plans, case managers, and social workers.

The candidate elected to represent 5B will vote on budgets, policies, and plans that can shape resources families see at school. CPS’s approved FY2027 budget includes funding for bilingual education as well as capital investments in roofs and building envelopes, mechanical systems, accessibility and other facility needs.

The forum also pressed both candidates on how voters should measure their progress. Neither candidate provided the numerical baselines and targets requested in that exchange. Blaise described the student experience she wants CPS to create, while Hargrove described the access, accountability, and post-graduation pathways he wants the district to provide.

For voters, those answers offer priorities to follow after the election: what opportunities actually become available, where resources go, and whether student outcomes improve.

How and when do I vote?

Election Day is Tuesday, November 3, 2026, from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Need to find your District 5B polling place, review your sample ballot, register, vote early, request voting assistance, or vote by mail? Use 15 West’s Chicago School Board Voting: An Accessible Guide.

District 5B voters will choose between Blaise and Hargrove on Nov. 3, along with voting in the citywide Board president race. Before voting, residents can confirm their district, review a sample ballot, and find voting information through the Chicago Board of Elections or 15 West’s accessible voter guide.