The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Your highlight from the week Lorain Schools CEO named
Selection of David Hardy draws strong reactions
The Lorain Academic Distress Commission on July 24 chose David M. Hardy Jr. from St. Louis, who serves as deputy superintendent of academics of St. Louis Public Schools with 24,000 students, to run the Lorain City School District with the power of a superintendent and most of the powers of a school board.
Lorain Academic Distress Commission Chair Tony Richardson called for a vote for a chief executive officer before public comment at a meeting July 24 at Lorain High School.
The 4-1 vote came before comment by Lorain teacher Steve Cawthon, a new member of Lorain Academic Distress Commission.
Richardson said later Hardy’s salary is $190,000, which is more than Lorain Schools Superintendent Dr. Jeff Graham and less than former Lorain Schools Superintendent Cheryl Atkinson, who made more than $200,000.
Hardy said he looks forward to working with Graham and the senior leadership team to prepare for this school year.
“All of the folks out here, I thank you for coming tonight. It takes a village to raise a child,” Hardy said. “I can tell right away that there is a village that cares about the 6,750 kids that go to our schools. Every step of the way every single day I will be looking for you to help guide us to where we can take this village to a whole other level.
“For me, I have eight aunts,” Hardy said. “My mom is one of eight sisters,
nine sisters if you count my god sister, who were there every single day to make sure I did the right thing. Back then it was easy because you just opened up the door and an aunt was down the road, your other aunt was across the street and you had a neighbor making sure you were doing the right thing, pulling your pants up when you’re told to, right?
“But times have changed,” Hardy said. “It is
harder to raise our kids. It is harder to make sure they are successful. But every comment I heard from the 24 folks who spoke tonight spoke to the fact that you have deep pride and care for each one of your kids in the district. I thank you all for your comments and I can’t wait to meet all of you individually, collectively over the next few weeks as we embark on this endeavor together, and understand that I will listen first. I will
make sure that is the priority. I do not come with an agenda. I actually have no contact with the state at this point. I have been hired by these wonderful commissioners to do a job and that is the same job I hear you asking me to do. So I am excited to meet with you all. I am excited to be a part of this village. Thank you.”
Longtime resident Rhoda Lee said, “I have to say, and everyone knows, to me this whole process is politically motivated. I think it is a set up. Perhaps you on the academic distress commission don’t realize it. I said it four years ago, and it’s happening. It’s an effort to privatize public education. I think you all have been used.
“I’m saddened by what has transpired,” Lee said, “and not against any of you. But the process and the way this was done was wrong. You better take a very hard look at what is happening in our system.”
E. Jean Wrice, president of Lorain NAACP, said Hardy stood out from the crowd when he described his way of getting acquainted with the city.
“Young man, you made remarks that nobody else at that table made,” Wrice said of a forum when the five candidates for CEO were introduced. “He went for a walk in the hood. He went to Burger King. He talked to our kids. And when I looked at the whole panel I said, ‘That’s it right there.’ While are we calling him a stranger? Our superintendent is a stranger. He don’t live in Lorain. That man said he’s willing to move to Lorain, bring his kids here. They’re going to go to Lorain City Schools. That’s what I look at. All of our money is going out of the city and then we wonder why the city is broke. And look at him. He knows what brown is. He’s brown.”