Black-out on Black's Whereabouts?
Wednesday, December 01, 2010
Incoming chancellor Cathie Black visited two elementary schools in Queens today. But just where she went remained a mystery until late in the afternoon.
The city's Department of Education said Black visited PS 111 and PS 78 with Assemblywoman Catherine Nolan and City Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer, both of Queens.
Outgoing Schools Chancellor Joel Klein allowed reporters to follow him on visits to schools when he first took office in 2002. His schedule was also routinely released by the Department of Education.
But the department has been unusually secretive about Black's schedule. She has not granted any interviews to the media since Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced her appointment on November 9th. She answered a few questions at a press conference that day and then made a brief comment to New York Post columnist Cindy Adams about how her appointment came out of left field.
Black took a few more questions yesterday after visiting PS 109 in the Bronx but didn't talk about policy, noting it was only her first day. A parent interrupted to ask her views on closing failing schools and Black said, "All of these things are very important and challenging questions and we'll come up with what we believe are the right answers."
It was Black's first visit to a public school since the state education commissioner granted her a waiver
