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The Detroit district school board will be on the hunt for a new member to replace Angelique Peterson-Mayberry, who is resigning to take on a countywide role.
Peterson-Mayberry, who was elected to the seven-member board in 2016 and began serving in 2017, was appointed this week to the Wayne County Commission. She’ll be completing the term of Irma Clark-Coleman, a longtime community leader, who died last month. Clark-Coleman had served on the board since 2010 and represented a portion of Detroit.
The board is now seeking people who want to fill the remainder of Peterson-Mayberry’s seat, which expires at the end of 2026.
Interested candidates can send their letters of intent to Vania Moore at vania.moore@detroitk12.org. The letters must explain why the candidate is interested in the position and include a resume and a copy of an identification card that lists their address. There also is a way for people to apply online. The board will consider those letters of intent and interview some candidates before making a decision.
A deadline for submitting applications will be determined next week, a spokesperson for the district told Chalkbeat Thursday.
Board President Corletta Vaughn said in a statement that the board “will move forward with a sense of urgency,” in filling the seat.
“We are grateful for Ms. Peterson-Mayberry’s leadership and look forward to engaging with Detroiters who are passionate and committed to DPSCD and will provide a collaborative and problem-solving approach.”
Peterson-Mayberry was one of the original members of the board for the Detroit Public Schools Community District, which was created as part of a legislative initiative to resolve deep debt in Detroit Public Schools. DPSCD was launched to concentrate on educating students and the day-to-day operation of schools, while DPS remains intact to collect tax revenue and pay off a mountain of debt.
One of the biggest decisions the board made early on was to hire Superintendent Nikolai Vitti to helm the district.
“Over eight years Angelique always led with integrity and with a spirit of service to the City and its people, especially employees, students, and families,” Vitti said in a statement. “She always listened to everyone but was willing to make hard decisions to rebuild the District and place it on a path of sustained success. Her legacy creates enormous shoes to fill but provides everyone with the example of what public service should look like.”
The board is holding a special meeting at 5 p.m. Monday to discuss the search process. The meeting will be in the board’s 12th floor conference room of the Fisher Building, 3011 W. Grand Boulevard.
Lori Higgins is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Detroit. You can reach her at lhiggins@chalkbeat.org.
