Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Superintendent Crystal Hill made her first public appearance Monday since being reinstated following a two-month suspension and investigation by the school board, the cause of which remains unknown.
Speaking at CMS' back-to-school media briefing, district officials declined to answer questions about the investigation. But Hill addressed the situation in her opening remarks, her first public comments since returning to the job.
“To ignore it, or to pretend that it didn’t happen would not be authentic, and that simply is not who I am,” Hill said. “However, I want to point out that today is not the time or the place to have that discussion. Today we are focused on the opening of schools.”
When pressed by reporters for more details, Hill said “There will be an opportunity for more information to be shared at a later time.”
Hill also said she was confident the district would be able to carry out its plans this school year despite the questions raised by the investigation.
“I feel confident in all of the initiatives that we’ve talked about today. Our success speaks for itself, and what I would say is that we were completely planned for today, not because the work of getting started for the first day of school starts at the end. We are always at least three or six months prepared,” she said. “We are always forecasting, we are always looking ahead. And like I said, I feel completely 100% confident that we are ready on the first day of school just like we were last year.”
School starts next Tuesday, Aug. 25. Hill was out for nearly two months after the CMS Board of Education placed her on leave, pending an investigation into “matters involving administrative and operational oversight.”
Last week, the board announced it was reinstating Hill after the investigation found “issues that will require ongoing attention as it relates to leadership and operational practice,” which the board said it would address directly with Hill.
The board has not provided any additional information — including the cause or the cost of the investigation.
