DeKalb County School District
6621977b745dda001e032323 Watson Harris Edited

DeKalb County (Georgia) board agrees to pay $325,000 to superintendent it fired

April 18, 2024
Cheryl Watson-Harris was ousted in 2022 after less than 2 years on the job.

The DeKalb County (Georgia) School Board has agreed to pay $325,000 to settle the contract of the superintendent it fired in 2022 after less than two years on the job.

WSB-TV reports that the board voted 6 to 1 to approve the settlement with Cheryl Watson-Harris based on her original contract terms. The board also agreed to pay $16,000 in attorneys fees.

At the time of her firing, Watson-Harris said she was “blindsided” by her the board's action, but board members said their relationship had been “deteriorating for some time to the point the association became irreconcilable.”

Watson-Harris was named superintendent for DeKalb Schools in June 2020.

Before being hired in DeKalb County, Watson-Harris served as first deputy chancellor, senior director of field support and Brooklyn executive director for the New York City Department of Education.

Following the dismissal of Watson-Harris, the school board appointed Vasanne Tinsley as interim superintendent, and in 2023, it hired Devon Horton, superintendent of the Evanston/Skokie (Illinois) School District, to lead DeKalb County schools.

About the Author

Mike Kennedy | Senior Editor

Mike Kennedy has been writing about education for American School & University since 1999. He also has reported on schools and other topics for The Chicago Tribune, The Kansas City Star, The Kansas City Times and City News Bureau of Chicago. He is a graduate of Michigan State University.

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