The fiery loss of the Sultana, a badly overcrowded steamboat on the Mississippi that exploded on April 27, 1865, cost over 1,700 lives – exceeding the 1,517 lost on the Titanic.

Member schools elect IHSA directors who hire an executive director and staff. The layers insulating IHSA policies from lawmakers and taxpayers are thicker than in most other education matters, but if the right people get angry, that self-governance will earn intense scrutiny.

The CTU hotly opposed a bill to halt all public school closures and prevent disproportionate budget cuts and changes to admissions criteria at Chicago’s selective enrollment schools until a fully elected Chicago school board is seated in 2027.