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Carstarphen out as APS superintendent
By Collin Kelley
The search is on for a new superintendent of Atlanta Public Schools after the board of education voted not to renew Meria Carstarphen’s contract on Sept. 9.
The Atlanta Board of Education said it will conduct a nationwide search for a new superintendent, but the decision to oust Carstarphen, and the way it was handled, has brought mixed reactions from the community.
Many parents were dismayed at the decision, while the Atlanta Federation of Teachers applauded the decision, since it had been unhappy with the superintendent’s “privatization” of APS by outsourcing the daily operations of six schools to charter groups. However, her tenure was championed by U.S. Rep. John Lewis, former mayors Shirley Franklin and Andrew Young and the Buckhead Coalition.
Atlanta School Board
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Chairman Jason Esteves did say how many board members were against renewing her contract, despite being confronted by parents about who was for and against the renewal. Local watchdog group Concerned Citizens for Effective Government has filed a complaint with the Georgia Attorney General’s office stating the school board violated the opening meetings act when it failed to make public the vote on renewing Carstarphen’s contract.
Esteves said the school board had actually decided in July not renew Carstarphen’s contract but delayed making it public so as not to disrupt the start of the new school year. The exact reasons for the board’s decision are still unclear, with Esteves and board members declining to go into details with local media. Carstarphen said during a press call on Sept. 12 she wasn’t given a specific reason. The school board has retained a public relations firm to deal with the fallout from its decision not renew Carstarphen’s contract.
Carstarphen responded to the board’s decision via her blog: “As I have expressed throughout the community for the past few months, I had a sincere desire for a contract extension so that our team and I could complete the vision and charge I was hired to achieve for the benefit of Atlanta’s children: Rebuild trust and restore pride in Atlanta Public Schools and position it for the future, especially after the largest cheating scandal in the history of public education.”
Esteves said he hoped Carstarphen would remain on the job until her contract expires on June 30, 2020. Shortly after the announcement that her contract wasn’t extended, Carstarphen’s name was floated as a possibility to become the superintendent of DeKalb County Schools. Carstarphen said during the press call that she would remain focused on APS but would not discuss her future.
Carstarphen, who was hired in 2014, has been both praised and vilified for her work to turn around Atlanta Public Schools in the wake of the standardized test cheating scandal. Her reputation as a no-nonsense leader has been well documented in Atlanta and in her previous superintendent postings in Austin, TX and St. Paul, MN. She was also the system’s biggest cheerleader, regularly making appearances at schools, hosting events and meeting with the media.
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In August, APS trumpeted improved Milestone testing scores and graduation statistics and Carstarphen celebrated the topping out of the soon-to-open Howard Middle School in the Old Fourth Ward. Principal and teacher turnover rate also stabilized under her tenure, and she persevered through an extended fight with the City of Atlanta to have old school property returned to APS.
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