Dennis M. Walcott (born September 7, 1951) is the former Chancellor of the
New York City Department of Education
The New York City Department of Education (NYCDOE) is the department of the government of New York City that manages the city's public school system. The City School District of the City of New York (or the New York City Public Schools) is t ...
. He succeeded
Cathie Black
Cathleen Prunty "Cathie" Black (born April 26, 1944) is a former New York City Schools Chancellor. On April 7, 2011, Black stepped down from her position after 95 days on the job. Her appointment to replace longtime Chancellor Joel Klein was annou ...
, who resigned in April 2011 after only three months on the job.
He was succeeded as chancellor by
Carmen Fariña. He is the president and chief executive officer of
Queens Public Library
The Queens Public Library (QPL), also known as the Queens Borough Public Library and Queens Library (QL), is the public library for the borough of Queens, and one of three public library systems serving New York City. It is one of the largest li ...
.
Although Walcott lacks training as a schools administrator,
[Daniel Massey, "Meet the new guy: Schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott", "Crain's New York Business," April 7, 2011 http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20110407/FREE/110409898] he served nine years as
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
Deputy Mayor for Education and was a member of the NYC Board of Education. He required a waiver from the
New York State Education Department under
Education Commissioner
Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty. Vari ...
David M. Steiner. Walcott is a former employee at Amistad Day Care Center and holds a master's degrees in the education field.
Prior to joining
Mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...
Michael Bloomberg in 2002 as Deputy Mayor for Education, he headed the New York chapter of the
Urban League
The National Urban League, formerly known as the National League on Urban Conditions Among Negroes, is a nonpartisan historic civil rights organization based in New York City that advocates on behalf of economic and social justice for African Am ...
.
[New York City Department of Education website, February 2009, "Q+A with Deputy Mayor Dennis Walcott" http://schools.nyc.gov/AboutUs/SchoolNews/CitySchools/Issues/022009/walcott.htm] In March 2016, Walcott was selected as President and CEO of the
Queens Public Library
The Queens Public Library (QPL), also known as the Queens Borough Public Library and Queens Library (QL), is the public library for the borough of Queens, and one of three public library systems serving New York City. It is one of the largest li ...
. and was criticized
for overseeing the Library's first branch closure despite increased funding.
Early life and education
Walcott is the son of immigrants from
Barbados
Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate) ...
and
St. Croix
Saint Croix; nl, Sint-Kruis; french: link=no, Sainte-Croix; Danish and no, Sankt Croix, Taino: ''Ay Ay'' ( ) is an island in the Caribbean Sea, and a county and constituent district of the United States Virgin Islands (USVI), an unincor ...
.
He is a native of
Queens, New York
Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...
. He attended
Francis Lewis High School
Francis Lewis High School (FLHS) is a selective public high school located in Fresh Meadows, in the New York City borough of Queens. It is one of the most-applied-to public high schools in New York City with 9,468 applicants in 2016. Operated by t ...
, and he earned a bachelor's degree in 1973 and a master's degree in 1974 from the
University of Bridgeport
The University of Bridgeport (UB) is a private university in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The university is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education. In 2021, the university was purchased by Goodwin University; it retain its own ...
in Connecticut. He earned a Master's in Social Work from
Fordham University in 1980.
Walcott's early employment was in counseling.
In 1974, he began a one and a half year tenure at the privately run pre-kindergarten Amistad Child Care and Family Center in
South Jamaica, Queens
South Jamaica (also commonly known as "The Southside") is a residential neighborhood in the borough of Queens in New York City, located south of downtown Jamaica. Although a proper border has not been established, the neighborhood is a subsection ...
.
Public service work
In 1975, Walcott founded the Frederick Douglass Brother-to-Brother mentoring program. He went on to become president and chief executive of the New York Urban League for 12 years, where he expanded educational and youth service programs. He also served as executive director of the Harlem Dowling Westside Center, expanding services to children and families in need.
In 1993 Mayor
David Dinkins
David Norman Dinkins (July 10, 1927 – November 23, 2020) was an American politician, lawyer, and author who served as the 106th mayor of New York City from 1990 to 1993. He was the first African American to hold the office.
Before enteri ...
appointed him to the predecessor agency to the Department of Education, the
New York City Board of Education. His term extended into the mayoral term of mayor
Rudy Giuliani.
He also taught as an adjunct professor of Social Work at
York College, and was a talk show radio host on community issues.
Under Walcott's direct leadership, after 30 years, the Queens Public Library closed their first Library branch ever in Court Square in Long Island City despite increased funding for Libraries by the City,
the area's population growth and multiple efforts by community members to ensure continuous library service. Local Councilman
Jimmy Van Bramer condemned
Dennis Walcott for his inability to prevent the closure despite years of notice in advance of the situation.
East Ramapo oversight
Walcott was assigned to review the budgetary and academic failures in the
East Ramapo Central School District
East Ramapo Central School District is a school district in Ramapo, New York, United States. It is headquartered in the Senator Eugene Levy Dr. Jack R. Anderson Education Center.
History 20th century
On March 4, 1952, seven school districts me ...
, which is mostly made up of
Orthodox Jews. He angered some in the community in December 2015 when he recommended that the state assign a committee with veto power to oversee the school board, and that boys and girls use the same bus services, something not permitted by the community's rabbis.
Personal life
Walcott and his wife Denise have four children and eight grandchildren, who have attended New York City Public Schools.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Walcott, Dennis
1952 births
American librarians
American people of Barbadian descent
American people of United States Virgin Islands descent
Fordham University alumni
Living people
New York City School Chancellors
People from Queens, New York
Queens Public Library
Deputy mayors of New York City
Educators from New York City
Francis Lewis High School alumni
University of Bridgeport alumni