Darnell Earley
Darnell Earley
Ingrid Jacques, deputy editorial page editor at The Detroit News urges the immediate firing of Darnell Earley, emergency manager for Detroit Public Schools since January 2015.
As the previous emergency for Flint for 16 months in 2013-14, Earley oversaw the transition from the Detroit water system to the Flint River, which resulted in the current water crisis there.
Jacques writes:
The emergency manager of Detroit Public Schools is now irrevocably tainted by his time in that same role for the city of Flint. Whether he deserves blame is still in question, but Earley was the state-appointed manager who oversaw Flint’s transition from the Detroit water system to Flint River water.
The switch in the spring of 2014 has led to disastrous consequences, including children now suffering from lead poisoning from the drinking water. Gov. Rick Snyder’s reputation has suffered for not acting quickly enough to ameliorate the situation in Flint and to demand accountability after.
The governor has a major perception problem having Earley at the helm of the financially failing DPS. And reports this week of school buildings that are unsafe and unclean for children only make it more obvious that this emergency manager is no longer a good fit.
His "departure needs to happen now," Jacques concludes.
