Illinois Teachers Union Chief Gets 39% Raise as State Reading Scores Lag

The Illinois Federation of Teachers has raised the pay of its president, Stacy Davis Gates, from $180,000 to $250,000 a year, a jump of nearly 39%. The IFT Executive Board approved the increase, according to an Oct. 29 report from NBC Chicago that Fox News later cited. The raise amounts to $70,000 annually.

The IFT salary is only part of what Davis Gates earns. She also leads the Chicago Teachers Union, where public records show she was paid just under $195,000. Added to the new IFT figure, her combined annual compensation comes to roughly $445,000, a total that critics have seized on.

The sharpest criticism came from the Illinois Policy Institute, a free-market think tank. Mailee Smith, its vice president of policy and litigation, told Fox News Digital that the Chicago Teachers Union spends more on running itself than on representing teachers. By the union's own reporting, she said, less than 19% of CTU spending went toward representation. In her view the raise shows the same priorities spreading to the state federation, with dues money going to leadership pay instead of members.

Smith also contrasted the leader's pay with that of classroom teachers. She said the average Illinois teacher earns only a fraction of the $445,000 combined figure, and that a raise of nearly 39% for a union leader does nothing for teachers who want classroom support or strong representation at the bargaining table.

The raise arrives amid ongoing questions about how Illinois students are performing. On the 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress, often called the Nation's Report Card, 30% of Illinois fourth graders scored at or above proficient in reading. Among eighth graders the share was 33%.

Chicago's numbers show similar gaps. In 2024, 23% of the city's fourth graders reached the NAEP Proficient level in reading. In math, 60% of Chicago fourth graders scored at or above NAEP Basic, up slightly from 59% in 2022 and from 50% in 2003. The Illinois Policy Institute, citing the 2026 Illinois Report Card, reported that 46% of Chicago Public Schools students in grades three through eight met reading proficiency standards in the 2025-26 school year. Among CPS 11th graders taking the ACT, it said, 44% were proficient in reading and 28% in math.

The CTU has faced criticism before over its emphasis on political and social activism. The Washington Post editorial board earlier faulted the union's focus on progressive social justice initiatives while Chicago students struggled in reading and math, and internal union documents previously reported by Fox News Digital showed spending on progressive political causes.

Smith added several personal criticisms of Davis Gates. She said Davis Gates has demanded that others pay their "fair share" while letting her own utility bills pile up, and that she sent her own child to private school while opposing scholarships for low-income families. Smith also said the raise came right after local teachers rejected a dues hike. These are Smith's claims, offered through the Illinois Policy Institute.

Davis Gates, the CTU and the IFT did not respond to Fox News Digital's requests for comment, and Chicago Public Schools did not respond about its testing results. The next thing to watch is whether the unions answer the criticism, and whether members press the debate over dues and leadership pay.