Jean-Claude Brizard (born January 12, 1963) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

former

school superintendent In the American education system, a superintendent or superintendent of schools is an administrator or manager in charge of a number of public schools or a school district, a local government body overseeing public schools. All school principa ...

. He served as chief executive officer of

Chicago Public Schools Chicago Public Schools (CPS), officially classified as City of Chicago School District #299 for funding and districting reasons, in Chicago, Illinois, is the third-largest school district in the United States, after New York and Los Angeles. ...

from 2011 to 2012. Directly before coming to Chicago, Brizard served as the superintendent of the

Rochester City School District The Rochester City School District is a public school district that serves approximately 24,900 students in the city of Rochester, New York. It is currently operating with a budget of $983 million, which comes out to approximately $39,500 per st ...

. Brizard is best known as an education reformer, a strong charter school advocate and a champion of labor reform, particularly in regards to limiting teacher tenure status. Brizard started his career as a teacher, then an administrator, in the New York School System. He now works part time as a consultant for education reform organizations in America but primarily focuses on raising his children.

Biography

Brizard was born in

Port-au-Prince Port-au-Prince ( , ; ht, Pòtoprens ) is the capital and most populous city of Haiti. The city's population was estimated at 987,311 in 2015 with the metropolitan area estimated at a population of 2,618,894. The metropolitan area is define ...

, Haiti. Dictator François Duvalier had his grandfather imprisoned and his parents fled to the United States when it was learned his father might be imprisoned as well. After reuniting with his family, Brizard attended public schools in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

and earned a bachelor's degree in chemistry and a master's degree in Science Education from Queens College and a master's degree in School Administration and Supervision from the

City College of New York The City College of the City University of New York (also known as the City College of New York, or simply City College or CCNY) is a public university within the City University of New York (CUNY) system in New York City. Founded in 1847, Cit ...

. He began his career as an instructor at

Rikers Island Rikers Island is a island in the East River between Queens and the Bronx that contains New York City's main jail complex. Named after Abraham Rycken, who took possession of the island in 1664, the island was originally under in size, but has ...

, later moving to

George Westinghouse Career and Technical Education High School George Westinghouse Career and Technical Education High School is a vocational high school in Downtown Brooklyn, New York, United States. It is located at 105 Tech Place, south of Tillary Street and east of Jay Street. It is named after the electr ...

, where he taught physics and became principal in 1999. In 2003 he rose to the instructional superintendency of Region 8,

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 attended the Superintendents’ Academy of the Broad Center for the Management of School Systems in 2007. In 2008, he assumed the superintendency of the

. In Rochester, he promoted charter schools and merit pay, pushed for performance standards, and met with so much opposition from the teachers’ union that they gave him a vote of no confidence before he left for Chicago.

Chicago Public Schools

Brizard was nominated by

Rahm Emanuel Rahm Israel Emanuel (; born November 29, 1959) is an American politician and diplomat who is the current United States Ambassador to Japan. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served two terms as the 55th Mayor of Chicago from 2011 ...

to be CEO of Chicago Public Schools on May 6, 2011. His appointment was approved by the Chicago Board of Education on May 25, and he took office on May 30. He stepped down after 17 months on October 11, 2012. In a written response Brizard stated he and the Mayor had come to a "mutual agreement" that he was a "distraction" to school reform. Rumors of Brizard's resignation were first reported by several news organizations on August 31, 2012, but were denied by Mayor Emanuel directly. The possibility of an impending resignation first surfaced in July 2012, when portions of Brizard's personnel evaluation were leaked to the press. The leaks raised concerns about his ability to manage such a large organization as CPS and turnover of his leadership team. In August 2012, the

Chicago Teachers Union The Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) is a labor union that represents teachers, paraprofessionals, and clinicians in the Chicago public school system. The union has consistently fought for improved pay, benefits, and job security for its members, an ...

went on strike for the first time in more than 25 years. The policies of Brizard and Mayor Emanuel were cited as the impetus for the strike. As part of his resignation package, Brizard received a year's salary at $250,000 along with other undisclosed benefits.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brizard, Jean-Claude 1964 births Haitian emigrants to the United States CEOs of Chicago Public Schools City College of New York alumni Living people Queens College, City University of New York alumni Educators from Illinois Rochester City School District superintendents