Superintendent Erroll Davis will speak to parents at North Atlanta High about Atlanta Public Schools’ decision to overhaul the school’s leadership team.
The two groups will meet on Oct. 9 at 6 p.m. at the high school, located at 2875 Northside Drive Northwest. The meeting promises to be a showdown between parents angered by the move and the APS administration. District 4 Board of Education member Nancy Meister has also criticized the school system’s handling of the situation.
APS gave parents a robocall notice on Oct. 5 as the school was carrying out its plan to remove principal Mark MyGrant and reassign the school’s leadership team.
MyGrant had returned to North Atlanta High as a favor following a bungled attempt to find his replacement after he announced his retirement. The Buckhead Reporter learned through an open records request that school officials had considered the former Riverwood International Charter School principal Eddie Echols. Echols faces charges that he stole nearly $25,000 in school funds. APS initially offered the job Reginald Richardson, a candidate most parents hadn’t met. Richardson turned down the job after he received a better offer from his current employer in Brooklyn, N.Y. After a new search, APS offered the job to Howard Taylor, a principal in the Gwinnett County school system
APS officials showed up to North Atlanta on Oct. 5, a Friday afternoon, to inform the school of the changes. MyGrant told the Atlanta Journal Constitution that security personnel arrived and told him to pack up and leave immediately, which he did. MyGrant told the AJC he suspects the decision was based on charges that he recommended hiring two “racist” employees. The charges weren’t substantiated, MyGrant said.
Officials at the school system offered little explanation about the move. Davis’ posted a letter on the APS website, but it did not mention the reason for the changes. Stephen Alford, spokesman for APS, said Taylor didn’t ask APS to reassign the school’s leadership, saying APS wanted to give Taylor the opportunity to choose his own team.