Cheers greet Cathie Black's departure
Deputy Mayor Dennis Walcott gets high marks from those in the know.STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A sigh of relief and renewed hope for the city's school system swept across Staten Island yesterday with word that a trusted deputy mayor with educational experience will now head the Department of Education.
Three months after being named schools chancellor amid a hail of criticism because of her lack of education experience, Cathie Black is gone, replaced by Deputy Mayor Dennis Walcott.
Borough officials hailed the move to Walcott, even as some said Ms. Black didn't get a fair shake.
"I have the utmost respect for Dennis," said City Councilman James Oddo (R-Mid-Island/ Brooklyn). "He's genuine and accessible. When we've asked him to come to Staten Island, he has."
Walcott, a member of the Bloomberg team since 2002, was on the Island this week to lead the ceremony opening the Gerard Carter Community Center in Stapleton.
Lawmakers said he has long been the go-to guy on education issues at City Hall.
Councilman Vincent Ignizio (R-South Shore) said Walcott had been "intimately involved in all levels of the Department of Education for many years."
"He is a qualified candidate," said Ignizio, a member of the Education Committee. "A great choice."
Cathie Black: She's kaput.Ignizio said that Walcott had worked with him to craft new PCB abatement regulations for city schools, had helped secure money for Tottenville High School's athletic field and had worked to bring more school seats to the Island.
Oddo said Walcott was key in helping achieve the expansion of PS 48 to the site of the old Doctors' Hospital in Concord.
"There are a lot of people rooting for Dennis," he said.
While saying Walcott has the "knowledge and expertise" to run the city school system, Councilwoman Debi Rose (D-North Shore) slammed Bloomberg for picking Ms. Black in the first place.
"I think it's ironic that the education mayor got an education," she said. "He claims that we must have the best teachers in the classroom but failed to heed his own advice when he hired Cathie Black to head the nation's largest public school system."
She said Walcott's "knowledge of the system and Staten Island should work to our advantage."
Ms. Black was the former chair of Hearst Publications and a friend of Bloomberg's in high-society circles; her appointment was slammed because she had no educational background and no experience of the city public school system.
Critics scoffed when Bloomberg said her managerial experience would make her a success. A recent poll showed that just 17 percent of New Yorkers approved of her job performance.
At a City Hall press conference yesterday, Walcott, in contrast, described himself as "just a city guy" from Queens and a former teacher whose family had attended public schools here for four generations.
Ms. Black did not attend the press conference.
It is thought that with his background, Walcott will have less trouble getting a needed waiver from the state education commissioner to take the job than Ms. Black did.
State Sen. Andrew Lanza (R-Staten Island), a member of the Senate Education Committee, said he would recommend Walcott get the waiver.
"I see no reason why he shouldn't get it," said Lanza, who said Walcott had worked to ensure that Asperger's syndrome kids from PS 4 got into the intermediate school their parents wanted.
"He's a fine choice," said Lanza. "He's very responsive and smart, with lots of experience. He has the right demeanor to head the school system."
Former Borough President Guy Molinari served with Walcott in the 1990s on a mayoral task force that aimed to improve police/community relations.
He also recalled Walcott from Walcott's days as president of the Urban League.
"He's a big asset," Molinari said. "They couldn't have thought of a better person. He knows his subject well. He's tough and smart."
Oddo gave Bloomberg kudos for admitting that Ms. Black "was not a good fit."
"I give him credit for not carrying her for three years," he said.
"Aborting this mission does take some political courage."
Said Ignizio, "It took a lot of guts to pull the plug on a bad decision."
Ignizio said that he thought Walcott would have been a better choice than Ms. Black when Joel Klein left as chancellor.
"The mayor made a mistake," he said.
But Borough President James P. Molinaro, one of Ms. Black's biggest backers, said that the now-former chancellor "wasn't given a fair chance."
"It's difficult to catch up after the slamming she took," he said. "She did have the best interests of the children at heart."
Molinaro said he has known Walcott through government channels for close to 20 years.
"He's a great choice," he said. "He's dedicated and committed."
In a welcome sign for lawmakers, Molinaro, Lanza, Oddo and Ignizio all said they received personal calls or e-mails from Walcott yesterday.
United Federation of Teachers president Michael Mulgrew said that Ms. Black's departure would give the city "the opportunity now to rethink its failed educational strategy."
"It should use this occasion to change its approach by emphasizing real learning, rather than test prep," said Mulgrew, an Oakwood resident. "To focus on fixing schools rather than closing them, and to stop making decisions based on ideology and to start really listening to the parents and teachers who know what the kids in our schools need."