Happy Friday, readers.
Durham Public Schools canceled school across the district today due to significant staff absences related to transportation support personnel.
On Wednesday, DPS Superintendent Pascal Mubenga resigned. He has been at the center of the budget error controversy that has caused an uproar for the district. Mubenga walks away with a nearly $300,000 severance check. DPS Chief Financial Officer Paul LeSieur already resigned on January 31 after the district put LeSieur on paid leave earlier in the month.
The school board named Deputy Superintendent Nicholas King to the lead role on Wednesday. King dutifully held that role for all of 24 hours before the board hired former Wake County superintendent Catty Moore to the interim position during a meeting Thursday evening. Moore most recently spent five years as Wake County Public Schools superintendent from 2018 to 2023.
“We are extremely fortunate to have someone with Catty’s knowledge and experience step into this role and help us lead Durham’s public schools,” said Bettina Umstead, chair of the DPS Board of Education, in a statement. “She is the right person for this job, and we look forward to working with her to support our students and staff.”
Moore said she is “honored” to step into the role.
“I have appreciated Durham Public Schools for its excellent traditions of achievement and equity,” Moore said in a brief statement yesterday. “I am excited to lead alongside our dedicated educators, staff, and community partners. I know together we will navigate this transition with grace and remain focused on our mission to educate students.”
The board also voted to continue paying salaries at the higher rate promised to staff last year for at least one more month. In January, the board requested $4.5 million out of its fund balance to cover those higher salaries for the month of January, but a long-term solution for the remainder of the school year still hasn’t been identified. The board will meet again on February 22 to further discuss its options.
Have a great weekend.
— Justin
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Durham
Here’s a timeline of the DPS salary crisis beginning in January 2023 when HIL Consultants released its pay study through this week.
Wake
A new report recommends ways that the city can revitalize downtown Raleigh’s Fayetteville Street, which has seen foot traffic down 78 percent since 2019.
Orange
A new documentary tells the story of a Chapel Hill hate crime.
Former UNC system presidents Tom Ross and Margaret Spellings will hold an online discussion about reforming the system on February 15. Former UNC chancellor Holden Thorp will moderate.
North Carolina
Candidates could have a tough time locking in 30 percent of the vote in some crowded primaries this cycle.
Today’s weather
Cloudy with a high of 62 degrees.
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