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Polarizing Department of Education Chancellor Richard Carranza is abruptly stepping down effective March 15 after nearly three controversial years at the helm, city officials announced Friday.
He will be replaced by current Bronx Executive Superintendent Meisha Ross-Porter, according to the DOE.
Officials said that Carranza does not have a new position lined up and is stepping away from his role to regroup after losing 11 family members to the coronavirus.
“It has been my greatest honor to serve as New York City Schools Chancellor and I can’t think of anyone who would be better to take the helm than Meisha Porter,” Carranza said in a statement.
From the outset of his administration, Carranza pointedly elevated race as a focal point of his administration — a position that drew applause from some quarters but intense opposition from others.
The native of Arizona drew especially fierce opposition from Asian community groups who objected to diversity initiatives that would drastically slash their numbers at top city schools.
Carranza’s inaugural controversy arrived early in his administration when he retweeted a story about a group of Manhattan parents objecting to a policy shift.
“WATCH: Wealthy white Manhattan parents angrily rant against plan to bring more black kids to their schools,” the posting read.
The tweet was a harbinger of things to come for the remainder of Carranza’s time in New York.
The outspoken schools chief frequently clashed with parents at public meetings — and once abruptly left a chaotic Queens gathering during a heated exchange with a mother over school safety.
The DOE asserted Friday that Carranza advanced the nation’s largest school system and cited gains in graduation rates and other fundamental metrics as evidence.
But critics have long charged education officials with diluting academic standards in order to produce attractive statistics — an assertion that predates Carranza.
In announcing her appointment, DOE officials lauded Porter as an effective DOE veteran with experience at all levels of senior administration.
“As a lifelong New Yorker, a product of our City’s public schools, and a career educator, it is the honor of my lifetime to serve as Chancellor,” she said in a statement. “Mayor de Blasio and Chancellor Carranza have laid an incredible foundation for me and I am ready to hit the ground running and lead New York City schools to a full recovery.”
But Porter has also seen her share of controversies.
She raised eyebrows in 2019 after throwing herself a $45,000 bash to celebrate her promotion to a top position.
Wearing a tiara, Porter entered the packed ballroom in a glass elevator during event.
Carranza and Porter are expected to appear alongside de Blasio at 10 a.m. this morning for a press conference.
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