NEW YORK—The first female schools chancellor for New York City was appointed on Tuesday by Mayor Bloomberg. Cathie Black comes from an illustrious media career to replace Joel Klein, who stepped down after serving eight years.
Klein committed to two terms when Bloomberg appointed him as the first New York City chancellor to be directly responsible for improving the city’s schools. Under Klein’s reign, the graduation rates have increased, and students have come out of the National Assessment of Educational Progress on top of the rest of the state.
Klein developed the annual progress reports that award letter grades to schools based on a number of factors. The ability of these reports to accurately reflect a school’s quality has been contested by some parents and teachers.
“Public schools in New York City changed my own life, and it has been a rare privilege to serve the kids and families of this city during the past eight years. I am thrilled that the mayor has selected Cathie Black, a distinguished leader, to move this work forward,” said Klein in a press release.
Black was steward of Hearst Magazines, was a key player in building the newspaper USA Today, and became the first female publisher of a weekly magazine, New York, in 1979. Bloomberg says he chose her for her business know-how, which will help her pick up where Klein left off and lead the city’s children into the workforce.
Klein also stepped into the position out of the media industry. He was the chief executive officer of Bertelsmann, Inc., one of the world’s largest media companies. According to the Associated Press, Klein will join News Corp. as an executive vice president.
Borough President Scott Stringer released a statement greeting Black to the post:
“While Cathie Black wasn’t on most people’s draft boards to become the next schools chancellor, she has been an all-star in the publishing world for years. I am glad to hear that her first order of business will be reaching out to parents, teachers, and other members of our school community, and I look forward to working with her to help improve city schools for all of our 1.1 million students.”
Klein committed to two terms when Bloomberg appointed him as the first New York City chancellor to be directly responsible for improving the city’s schools. Under Klein’s reign, the graduation rates have increased, and students have come out of the National Assessment of Educational Progress on top of the rest of the state.
Klein developed the annual progress reports that award letter grades to schools based on a number of factors. The ability of these reports to accurately reflect a school’s quality has been contested by some parents and teachers.
“Public schools in New York City changed my own life, and it has been a rare privilege to serve the kids and families of this city during the past eight years. I am thrilled that the mayor has selected Cathie Black, a distinguished leader, to move this work forward,” said Klein in a press release.
Black was steward of Hearst Magazines, was a key player in building the newspaper USA Today, and became the first female publisher of a weekly magazine, New York, in 1979. Bloomberg says he chose her for her business know-how, which will help her pick up where Klein left off and lead the city’s children into the workforce.
Klein also stepped into the position out of the media industry. He was the chief executive officer of Bertelsmann, Inc., one of the world’s largest media companies. According to the Associated Press, Klein will join News Corp. as an executive vice president.
Borough President Scott Stringer released a statement greeting Black to the post:
“While Cathie Black wasn’t on most people’s draft boards to become the next schools chancellor, she has been an all-star in the publishing world for years. I am glad to hear that her first order of business will be reaching out to parents, teachers, and other members of our school community, and I look forward to working with her to help improve city schools for all of our 1.1 million students.”
