Former Wyandotte Public Schools Supt. Carla Harting (left), seated next to school board President Cindy Kinney, was named interim superintendent at the April 11 board meeting.
By SUE SUCHYTA
Sunday Times Newspapers
WYANDOTTE – Former Wyandotte Public Schools Supt. Carla Harting was named interim superintendent at the April 11 board meeting and will serve the district until a permanent replacement is chosen.
She was hired at a rate of $616 per day, effective immediately.
Harting served as superintendent from 2011 to 2014, after which she taught at Wayne State University’s College of Education.
She worked with Wyandotte Public Schools from 1973 to 1979 as a teacher for the cognitively impaired, from 1979 to 1985 as a resource room teacher, from 1986 to 1997 as a Special Education Department chair and teacher consultant, and from 1997 to 2011 as the principal of Special Education and Child Accounting.
Harting also served as an administrator from 2005 to 2014 at WSU’s College of Education.
She thanked the school board and the community for the faith they are placing in her to take on the role of interim superintendent.
“As in my previous role as a Wyandotte superintendent, I plan to work closely with the board of education, staff members, parents and community members to ensure that our students continue to receive a high-quality education, and I commit to working collaboratively with all stakeholders to ensure a successful transition until a new superintendent is selected,” she said.
Harting expressed her enthusiasm for refamiliarizing herself with the district.
“You’ve had a bond since I’ve been here, so I am really excited to see what’s going on, and to see students and faculty,” she said.
Former Supt. Catherine Cost resigned amid the controversy over the cell tower contract she signed with T-Mobile on Washington Elementary School, which some parents and faculty strongly oppose.
Two of the parent activists, attorney Josh Castmore and Alexandria Cotner, plan to meet with Harting, with the intention of setting a deadline to resolve the cell tower contract issue. If that does not occur, Castmore plans to file a lawsuit on behalf of the parents and to seek a temporary restraining order so the cell tower is not turned on at the end of the school year.