COLLEGE PARK, Ga. — The Fulton County school board has extended the contract of the county’s school superintendent, Mike Looney. It’s an unusual endorsement in a job that is often – as Thomas Hobbes described life itself -- nasty, brutish and short.
Looney, U.S. Marine veteran, spoke at a Veterans Day event a half day after the Fulton County Board of Education offered him the one-year extension.
"I think in some ways, the board’s extension of my contract is symbolic of their belief that our employees are doing a good job district wide," Looney said Friday.
Looney started his tenure in 2019. His first challenge was the COVID-19 pandemic, and navigating virtual school in 2020 and 2021. During that time, school board member Katha Stewart said Looney found a way to launch what she says is a groundbreaking program called Science of Reading.
"Using some of our federal COVID relief funds to train all of our teachers in the science of reading, and it has really been transformational to our students," Stewart said. "We also have seen our graduation rate go to the highest it’s ever been."
During Looney’s tenure in Fulton County, neighboring DeKalb County has had four superintendents during the same four year period; the City of Atlanta has had three.
"It’s sometimes difficult to keep a superintendent for an extended period of time and it’s the case not only here in the metro area but across the country," Stuart said.
Asked about his durability, Looney said: "I don’t have any kind of magic formula other than work hard, focus on students first and build trust."
Looney’s current extension expires in 2026. History suggests he could get another offer to stay even longer