Alycia Meriweather
After the sickouts and attacks on now-former Emergency Manager Darnell Earley, the school district now has a leader who has the backing of the teachers' union.
Lori Higgins of the Detroit Free Press reports that new interim superintendent for Detroit Public Schools, Alycia Meriweather, steps in at a crucial time for the district as it faces financial crisis and works to regain independence from the state.
The Freep reports:
She takes the reins just weeks before the district is expected to run out of money, and as lawmakers debate controversial plans to provide an additional $715 million in funding to pay off the district's debt.
Meriweather is a former teacher in the district, lives in the city and is a DPS graduate. She frequently became emotional as she spoke to reporters. Teachers in the district, she said, put her name forward as a potential interim superintendent.
"I am a lifelong Detroiter. I love the city and I love the school district. More than both of those, I love the children of the city of Detroit," she said.