Atlanta Public Schools swore in five school board members, including two new ones last week.
The board members included incumbents Katie Howard (District 1), Erika Mitchell (District 5) and Jessica Johnson (At-Large Seat 9) and new members Ken Zeff (District 3) and Alfred “Shivy” Brooks (At-Large Seat 7).
The new board’s first votes were to elect Mitchell as the new chairwoman and District 4 representative Jennifer McDonald as the new vice chair. Mitchell will replace Eshé Collins. McDonald will take over for Aretta Baldon.
After being elected unanimously as chairwoman, Mitchell pledged to listen to her fellow board members and community stakeholders. Some constituents have complained at community meetings that board members are slow to respond via email or the district’s “Let’s Talk” messaging system.
“Our shared vision is to be a high-performing school district where students love to learn, educators are inspired, families engage and the community trusts the system,” she said.
Newly-elected vice chair McDonald said the board is committed to regaining the public’s trust.
“We know we have work to do,” she said. “The most important decision I’ll probably ever make on this board is who’s going to lead this district after ... (interim Superintendent) Danielle Battle.”
Zeff agreed with McDonald that choosing the district’s new superintendent is a top priority.
“We (need to) focus on making sure that we get a world-class superintendent to lead the school system that would pass a budget that prioritizes students and teachers and ... we (need to) stay laser-focused on literacy strategy as a means to self-determination for our kids,” he said.
The district has hired Hazard Young Attea & Associates to lead the search for a new superintendent. The application process ends this Friday. The board hopes to select a finalist for the job by March.
Brooks, the other new face on the board, is the first active teacher to serve. He teaches economics and government at Charles R. Drew High School in Clayton County.
“I firmly believe that education is the cornerstone of societal progress and as your representative, I will tirelessly work to ensure that every student has the opportunity to succeed,” he said.
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