NEW YORK—It’s been a bumpy road for former media mogul Cathleen Black since Mayor Michael Bloomberg appointed her Schools Chancellor in November. Now, after three months in office, it’s all over.
Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced Black’s resignation and the appointment of Deputy Mayor Dennis Walcott as her replacement on Thursday.
“Cathie and I had a conversation this morning, and we both agreed the story had become about her and it should be about the students and this is the right thing to do,” said Bloomberg.
A reporter asked if the mayor’s mention of “story” indicated the media had a major role in how this played out. Bloomberg parried the question, stating simply, “it is what it is.”
The media hoopla surrounding Black’s surprise appointment—a woman successful in business but without experience in the field of education—was aggravated by a series of attention-grabbing slip ups.
In January, shortly after officially taking the post, she made an inappropriate joke about birth control being the answer to overcrowded schools. In a press conference shortly after this incident, the mayor cut Black’s response short and stepped in to apologize for her. She is unaccustomed to being in the public eye, explained Bloomberg.
A Marist poll released Monday showed Black’s approval among voters sits at a dismal 17 percent. Four of the eight deputy education chancellors left over from former Chancellor Joel Klein’s term have resigned since she took office—two of them left just this week—suggesting her approval rating within the department has been similarly lacking.
“I think she has done an admirable job plunging herself into the work,” said Bloomberg, adding that he has “nothing but respect and admiration for her.” While giving her an “A” for effort, he added that “she loves New York and she wants to do what’s best for the families and students that we serve.”
While one short-lived public service career came to an end, another took a hard hit. Bloomberg’s third term is just about half way through and his approval rating is at an all-time low—39 percent according to a Quinnipiac University poll released in March.
The mayor, ever-adamant in his support of Black through all the bad press, now has to live with this admitted failure. He apologized for dropping the snow ball, so to speak, in the December blizzard, and Thursday morning he found himself again expressing his apologies to New Yorkers, this time over a much criticized decision to appoint Black in first place.
“I take full responsibility for the fact that this has not worked out as either of us had hoped and expected,” Bloomberg said.
Just as he did in the weeks following the blizzard, the mayor insisted he will not dwell on past mistakes, but will instead move forward and do better in the future.
Queens-native Walcott graduated from the city’s public school system and became the first in his family to go to college, eventually earning masters’ degrees in education and social work. His kids are the product of the public school system and his grandson is currently in it.
Walcott was a kindergarten teacher for two years in Queens and founded the Frederick Douglass Brother-to-Brother mentoring program. He also spent three years as a foster care worker.
Walcott led the New York City Urban League for 12 years, during which time he expanded it to incorporate educational programs geared toward lowering the dropout rate. He is the former Board of Education president, and is currently the mayor’s top aide on educational policy in his role as deputy mayor.
With decades of experience in the system, Walcott still requires a waiver to become chancellor. He meets all the requirements but one: he only taught for two years, but a chancellor is required to have taught for three years, explained Stu Loeser of Bloomberg’s office.
New York State Commissioner of Education David Steiner granted Black a waiver, drawing much ire from some education advocates. The Deny Waiver Coalition formed to legally challenge the waiver for Black, though their challenge was unsuccessful.
Noah E. Gotbaum, one of the parent petitioners, explained the coalition’s views on Bloomberg’s new choice for chancellor.
“There is no question that he has much more experience and much better knowledge of our education system,” said Gotbaum. “In that sense, we certainly think he is more qualified, but that doesn’t alleviate the need for us to go out and find the best educational leader through a process. We are calling for a process in which teachers, parents, and community members are involved.”
Gotbaum said the coalition would be meeting in the next 24 hours to really discuss their position on the matter. Bloomberg’s announcement took the whole city by surprise, much as his appointment of Black did back in November.
United Federation of Teachers (UFT) President Michael Mulgrew said, “I am hoping that the DOE and the City of New York take this as an opportunity to change some of the education policies that are not working.”
Mum was that word on Mulgrew’s opinion of the new chancellor choice. The UFT has not taken an official stance on Walcott’s appointment as of yet, says a UFT spokesperson.
Walcott said he believes strongly in testing, a major part of Bloomberg’s education agenda. This may not sit well with the teachers union, which has had its qualms about the current system of evaluating the city’s schools according to standardized testing.
Steiner decided to award Black the waiver she needed to take the seat based upon her managerial skills. With the help of Deputy Chancellor Shael Polakow-Suransky, whose education experience met the requirements for chancellor, Steiner was confident in Black’s ability to handle the role.
Apparently, he shouldn’t have been so confident.
The same Office of Accountability employee observed that in recent years the New York City Department of Education has become increasingly complicated and inefficient. Whenever there is a problem, she says, it is always difficult to find the person in charge and solve it.
Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced Black’s resignation and the appointment of Deputy Mayor Dennis Walcott as her replacement on Thursday.
“Cathie and I had a conversation this morning, and we both agreed the story had become about her and it should be about the students and this is the right thing to do,” said Bloomberg.
A reporter asked if the mayor’s mention of “story” indicated the media had a major role in how this played out. Bloomberg parried the question, stating simply, “it is what it is.”
The media hoopla surrounding Black’s surprise appointment—a woman successful in business but without experience in the field of education—was aggravated by a series of attention-grabbing slip ups.
In January, shortly after officially taking the post, she made an inappropriate joke about birth control being the answer to overcrowded schools. In a press conference shortly after this incident, the mayor cut Black’s response short and stepped in to apologize for her. She is unaccustomed to being in the public eye, explained Bloomberg.
A Marist poll released Monday showed Black’s approval among voters sits at a dismal 17 percent. Four of the eight deputy education chancellors left over from former Chancellor Joel Klein’s term have resigned since she took office—two of them left just this week—suggesting her approval rating within the department has been similarly lacking.
“I think she has done an admirable job plunging herself into the work,” said Bloomberg, adding that he has “nothing but respect and admiration for her.” While giving her an “A” for effort, he added that “she loves New York and she wants to do what’s best for the families and students that we serve.”
While one short-lived public service career came to an end, another took a hard hit. Bloomberg’s third term is just about half way through and his approval rating is at an all-time low—39 percent according to a Quinnipiac University poll released in March.
The mayor, ever-adamant in his support of Black through all the bad press, now has to live with this admitted failure. He apologized for dropping the snow ball, so to speak, in the December blizzard, and Thursday morning he found himself again expressing his apologies to New Yorkers, this time over a much criticized decision to appoint Black in first place.
“I take full responsibility for the fact that this has not worked out as either of us had hoped and expected,” Bloomberg said.
Just as he did in the weeks following the blizzard, the mayor insisted he will not dwell on past mistakes, but will instead move forward and do better in the future.
New Chancellor
Bloomberg appointed Deputy Mayor Dennis Walcott as Black’s replacement, saying Walcott is “a man who has been part of every successful education reform we’ve made over the past nine years.”Queens-native Walcott graduated from the city’s public school system and became the first in his family to go to college, eventually earning masters’ degrees in education and social work. His kids are the product of the public school system and his grandson is currently in it.
Walcott was a kindergarten teacher for two years in Queens and founded the Frederick Douglass Brother-to-Brother mentoring program. He also spent three years as a foster care worker.
Walcott led the New York City Urban League for 12 years, during which time he expanded it to incorporate educational programs geared toward lowering the dropout rate. He is the former Board of Education president, and is currently the mayor’s top aide on educational policy in his role as deputy mayor.
With decades of experience in the system, Walcott still requires a waiver to become chancellor. He meets all the requirements but one: he only taught for two years, but a chancellor is required to have taught for three years, explained Stu Loeser of Bloomberg’s office.
New York State Commissioner of Education David Steiner granted Black a waiver, drawing much ire from some education advocates. The Deny Waiver Coalition formed to legally challenge the waiver for Black, though their challenge was unsuccessful.
Noah E. Gotbaum, one of the parent petitioners, explained the coalition’s views on Bloomberg’s new choice for chancellor.
“There is no question that he has much more experience and much better knowledge of our education system,” said Gotbaum. “In that sense, we certainly think he is more qualified, but that doesn’t alleviate the need for us to go out and find the best educational leader through a process. We are calling for a process in which teachers, parents, and community members are involved.”
Gotbaum said the coalition would be meeting in the next 24 hours to really discuss their position on the matter. Bloomberg’s announcement took the whole city by surprise, much as his appointment of Black did back in November.
United Federation of Teachers (UFT) President Michael Mulgrew said, “I am hoping that the DOE and the City of New York take this as an opportunity to change some of the education policies that are not working.”
Mum was that word on Mulgrew’s opinion of the new chancellor choice. The UFT has not taken an official stance on Walcott’s appointment as of yet, says a UFT spokesperson.
Walcott said he believes strongly in testing, a major part of Bloomberg’s education agenda. This may not sit well with the teachers union, which has had its qualms about the current system of evaluating the city’s schools according to standardized testing.
Another Resignation on the Horizon
As Black steps down, Steiner, the man who gave her a waiver, is also rumored to be considering resignation, reports a New York State Education Department Office of Accountability employee who wished to remain anonymous.Steiner decided to award Black the waiver she needed to take the seat based upon her managerial skills. With the help of Deputy Chancellor Shael Polakow-Suransky, whose education experience met the requirements for chancellor, Steiner was confident in Black’s ability to handle the role.
Apparently, he shouldn’t have been so confident.
The same Office of Accountability employee observed that in recent years the New York City Department of Education has become increasingly complicated and inefficient. Whenever there is a problem, she says, it is always difficult to find the person in charge and solve it.
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