The Atlanta Board of Education has postponed extending Superintendent Erroll Davis’ contract as parents at North Atlanta High continue pressuring the board to answer questions about removing the school’s leadership team.
The board voted at its Oct. 22 meeting to delay the extension until December, according to APS. The vote followed a lengthy executive session. Parents attended the meeting and bombarded board members with emails about the Oct. 5 incident. On that Friday afternoon, APS officials reassigned the school’s academy leaders and told Principal Mark MyGrant to leave immediately.
District 4 Board of Education Member Nancy Meister asked Board Chairman Reuben McDaniel to delay the extension and to release all email communications about the decision to remove MyGrant. Davis has said the decision was about academics and a potential state takeover of the school, but the explanation has been disputed by parents and state Department of Education officials. MyGrant contends it is about allegations he hired two racist employees, and emails released to the Atlanta Journal Constitution show McDaniel asked questions about alleged institutional racism at the school.
Rep. Edward Lindsey, R-Atlanta, said he will introduce a “Parent Trigger Bill” to make it easier for parents to petition turning their existing school into a charter school. A charter school would give parents more control over the school. Lindsey has promised to introduce the bill in response to the changes at North Atlanta High.