The temporary D.C. schools chief appointed after Michelle Rhee’s resignation will stay on through June 30 and possibly beyond.
Interim Chancellor Kaya Henderson told The Washington Examiner on Friday afternoon that she and Mayor-elect Vincent Gray had agreed there was too much underway for her to leave before the school year’s end. Beyond June 30, Henderson said, “He has said he’s interested in me” remaining.
Henderson and Gray had previously not commented on what would happen to Henderson, Rhee’s deputy chancellor and the chief negotiator of the Washington Teachers’ Union contract, after he is sworn in on Jan. 2. At a news conference announcing Rhee’s resignation in October, Gray confirmed there would be an official search for a new chancellor of D.C. schools.
Henderson acknowledged that Gray was in a tough spot when Rhee left at October’s end, and whether “I was his real pick” for chancellor remains to be seen. She views the next seven months as “a trial period,” in which she and Gray will see whether they can work harmoniously to reform schools.
“You’re not a family until you have a fight,” Henderson said.
