Who are these people?!

Dear Colleagues,

I am writing to tell you that Dr. Marcia V. Lyles will be leaving the New York City Department of Education to become the Superintendent of Christina School District, the largest public school district in Delaware. Over the past two years, Dr. Lyles has applied her three decades of experience here in New York City to dramatically improve the quality of teaching and learning in our schools. Her work, especially with our middle schools, has been extraordinary. She is a fighter for equity and excellence in public education. I know we’ll all miss her here in New York, but I know that her talent and expertise will mean great things for the students of Delaware.

When Marcia leaves in June, Santiago (“Santi”) Taveras will become the interim-acting Deputy Chancellor for Teaching and Learning. He is the right person to continue the work that Marcia has done so well. Santi began his career in New York City’s schools as a teacher at Central Park East I Elementary School. He is the founding principal of the Banana Kelly High School and the Urban Assembly Academy for Careers in Sports, both in the Bronx, and served as the Instructional Superintendent in Manhattan’s Region 9. He currently serves as the City’s Senior Supervising Superintendent, where he oversees the Department of Education’s community and high school superintendents.

Please join me in congratulating Marcia and welcoming Santi to his new role.

Sincerely,

Joel I. Klein