At Helen A. Haugan Elementary in Albany Park, parents and teachers say the school is packed to the point where learning has spilled into storage closets and hallways. A former library is now doing double duty as a multipurpose room, and classrooms are described as shoulder-to-shoulder. School leaders tried a fix: move roughly 250 seventh- and eighth-graders into the empty Aspira/North River building a block away, which they argued would free up dozens of rooms almost overnight. When district officials said no, it set off a running neighborhood argument over whether Haugan is truly overcrowded or just uncomfortably full.
CPS Denies Co‑location After OPM Review
In a letter to the school community, the Office of Portfolio Management at Chicago Public Schools said the proposed co‑location "WILL NOT be moving forward at this time" after what it described as a thorough review of space, enrollment patterns, safety, and costs. Acting Chief Portfolio Officer Conrad Timbers‑Ausar wrote that district staff gathered extensive feedback from both school communities and pledged to keep working with Haugan to figure out how to squeeze more usable room out of the existing building.
Parents Say 'No Space For Us'
"No space for us," is how parents and community members summed it up to the Chicago Tribune. They pointed to the converted library, cramped special-education rooms and kindergarten sections that teachers say are brushing up against 30 kids. One kindergarten teacher told the paper her class is "nearly 30" students, and parents say the lack of private offices for administrators and clinicians makes basic logistics harder for staff and families trying to meet in confidence.
Numbers Fuel The Dispute
The district’s own numbers complicate the crowding complaints. According to reporting by the Chicago Tribune, Chicago Public Schools concluded Haugan can hold about 1,230 students, while a community recheck put capacity closer to 1,159. Current enrollment sat around 1,073 students, which is roughly 86 fewer kids than the community’s recalculated capacity.
Parents say that on paper, those numbers might look fine, but that in real life, crowded hallways and tightly packed classroom assignments make the functional capacity feel a lot lower than any official spreadsheet suggests. Adding another wrinkle, the new Chicago Teachers Union contract caps kindergarten classes at 25 students and provides support for classrooms that go over that line, according to Chalkbeat.
Why The Old Charter Building Matters
The empty building at the center of this fight is the former Aspira Haugan Middle School at 3729 W. Leland. It became available after the charter operator announced it would close the campus, leaving an entire block of unused classrooms that Haugan families say would be the least disruptive place to shift older students. WBEZ and other local outlets have reported on Aspira’s financial troubles and the decision to shut down the middle school in June 2025, which is what opened the space Haugan wanted to use.
What Comes Next
The district’s letter says the CEO’s decision weighed safety, cost, and community impact, and that the Office of Portfolio Management will keep working with Haugan and the larger Albany Park community on options and next steps. Chicago Public Schools has asked both school communities to stay involved in meetings and surveys while officials sort through possible short-term fixes and longer-range capacity planning.
Families Say They'll Keep Pushing
For now, parents and the Local School Council say they are not dropping the issue. They want clear, immediate relief, whether that means more staff, reconfigured rooms, or another, harder look at the vacant Leland site. With CPS promising more conversations but standing by its initial decision, the tug-of-war over what counts as "overcrowded" at Haugan looks set to continue into next year in community meetings and district reviews.
