NYC schools chancellor resigns, citing COVID-19 personal toll

Chancellor Richard Carranza spent 3 years in his role

New York City's Schools Chancellor Richard Carranza announced Friday he will step down, citing the coronavirus pandemic's personal toll on his family.

He will be replaced by Bronx Executive Superintendent Meisha Ross Porter, who will become the first Black woman to lead the nation's largest public school district.

Richard Carranza, chancellor of the New York City Department of Education, speaks during a public hearing with Bill de Blasio, mayor of New York, not pictured, on school governance and mayoral control in New York, U.S., on Friday, March 15, 2019. De Blasio told MSNBC today that he hasn't precluded seeking the Democratic presidential nomination and says he's a "social Democrat" seeking to redistribute wealth. Photographer: Natan Dvir/Bloomberg via Getty Images (Getty Images)

Carranza, who has spent three years on the job, briefly choked back tears at a news conference as he announced his decision to step down.

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"I know the pandemic has not been easy for you or for any New Yorker," he said.

"And make no mistake, I am a New Yorker — well not by birth, but by choice — a New Yorker who has lost 11 family and close childhood friends to this pandemic. And a New Yorker who, quite frankly, needs to take time to grieve."

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He said that he felt the city’s public school system, with around 1 million students, was stable enough to handle a leadership change.

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