Kate oversees WBEZ’s four-person education desk, covering city, suburban and statewide school issues. She came to WBEZ in 2016 after nearly 20 years as a print reporter and opinion writer. Most recently, she was Deputy Editorial Page Editor at the Chicago Sun-Times, where she wrote editorials on education, Illinois politics and city and state policy issues. She also ran the paper’s political endorsement process. Previously, Kate worked as a Sun-Times metro reporter, covering schools and public housing, and at the Associated Press, The Providence Journal and ABC 20/20, and she has freelanced for The Atlantic.com. Kate also served as a director at the University of Chicago Institute of Politics where she was awarded a fellowship to teach a seminar on the politics of school reform. Kate graduated from Cornell University and has master’s degrees in journalism and public policy from Columbia University.
Kate is a two-time winner of the national Education Writers Association top opinion writing award for editorials on the Chicago Public Schools and is a winner of the Studs Terkel Award for coverage of Chicago’s diverse communities. She regularly speaks publicly and to groups about education issues, journalism and politics. Kate lives in Chicago with her family.
Kate Grossman
Stories by Kate Grossman
Mother of abducted Israeli son says it’s ‘Day 61 … of complete anguish and despair’
Rachel Goldberg, a Chicago native, says her son Hersh is the last hostage with ties to Chicago being held … “and we’re just praying and hopeful.”
Can you pass an eighth grade Constitution test?
Take our 15-point quiz on the Illinois and U.S. constitutions, based on real questions students face.
Illinois middle schoolers have to pass a civics ed class. How do you make sure it sticks?
CPS discourages civics tests based on rote memorization. Try a quiz using that approach — and see what schools are doing now instead.
What to know about the ‘school choice’ scholarship program now up for renewal in Springfield
Supporters say it helps lower-income families send kids to private school. Opponents call it a back-door voucher program funded by taxpayers.
Illinois is looking to overhaul how kids learn to read
“Children … aren’t reading well at all, particularly Black and brown children,” said Tinaya York, a contributor to the state’s new literacy plan.
Second bomb threat in two days forces evacuation of Highland Park elementary school
Red Oak School received threats Thursday and Friday. The school was also targeted last week by a X account that caters to an anti-LGBTQ+ audience.
Highland Park after the mass shooting: A new film highlights the resilience of its residents
Jon Siskel’s 20-minute documentary features 13 people reflecting on the parade where gunfire erupted on July 4, 2022 and the Highland Park community.
Vallas and Johnson clash on school choice, fueling different donor bases in mayor’s race
Paul Vallas promises to expand school choice while Brandon Johnson says it deepens segregation and inequity. Donors are lining up on either side.
The great mask debate continues on CPS’s first mask optional day
Monday was the first day Chicago Public School students were allowed to go without a mask in more than a year.
Chicago Public Schools plans to end mask mandate ‘in the near future,’ CEO says
As a legal effort to block Chicago Public Schools’ masking rule advances, CPS says it will share its mask optional plan early next week.