Former Army general is new superintendent in Wake County, N.C.

From The Raleigh News & Observer: The Wake County (N.C.) school board's Republican majority selected retired Army Brig. Gen. Anthony J. Tata as the system's new superintendent in a 4-2 vote. Two Democratic board members, while pledging to work with Tata, criticized his relatively short tenure in education--18 months as chief operations officer for the Washington, D.C., city schools versus his 28 years of military service. In what seemed to be a bid to reassure those concerned about the future of academics, board chairman Ron Margiotta and others praised interim superintendent Donna Hargens, and Tata says he will ask Hargens to stay on as chief academic officer.