Atlanta school district leaders are reshuffling some duties after the departure of one of the district’s top administrators, just six months after he was promoted to his recent position.
Former Deputy Superintendent Timothy Gadson told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution he stepped down to be closer to members of his family in South Florida who are ill. He said he’s been traveling back and forth, but needed to be closer to them.
“(Interim Superintendent) Dr. (Danielle) Battle is an excellent leader and I just don’t want to take away from the work,” Gadson said. “(Battle has) been very supportive and ... she would allow me to (travel back and forth), but I just don’t want to do that to her and the district.”
Gadson was appointed to the role of deputy superintendent by Battle in September. He previously served as an associate superintendent of high schools in Atlanta Public Schools.
Gadson has worked for several school districts across the country. He was awarded an $800,000 settlement in 2019 after filing a discrimination lawsuit against Henry County Schools. The school board made him Henry County’s sole finalist for superintendent in June 2017, but rescinded the decision two weeks later, saying Gadson’s salary demands were too high. He would have been the district’s first African American superintendent.
In 2021, he became superintendent of the Salt Lake City school district in Utah, breaking ground as the state’s first African American district superintendent. However, he was placed on administrative leave a year later, according to local media. He reached a separation agreement with the district in October 2021.
Gadson’s departure from APS means Battle will have to rearrange some senior cabinet positions. Taking over Gadson’s former role is Erica Long, who had been serving as Battle’s chief of staff.
Tommy Usher will move from an associate superintendent to chief of schools, the district said. Program Director Lisa Hill will move into Usher’s former position.
“Both (Usher and Hill) are longtime educational professionals with a deep understanding of the needs of principals, teachers, and schools that will greatly benefit our students,” officials said in a statement.
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