Atlanta Public Schools has assigned the duties of its former executive director of safety and security to three other administrators.
Marquenta Sands Hall retired from the executive director position on June 30, according to district personnel records.
District officials said the job has not been posted and instead the duties “have been absorbed” by the chief operations officer, police chief and the security director.
APS spokesman Ian Smith said that the decision to eliminate the executive director position was made in an effort to “align and streamline” the APS police department’s structure.
In 2016, when APS launched its own in-house police force, Hall's title changed from security director to executive director. Before that, the school system had a contract with the Atlanta Police Department, whose officers patrolled its schools.
“At Atlanta Public Schools, the safety and security of our students and staff continues to be a top priority. Over the past two years, the district has worked diligently to establish a police department with a strong connection to our schools and our communities. Following the retirement of our executive director of safety & security on June 30, 2018, the district took the opportunity to align and streamline our police department’s organizational structure by implementing best practices from other school police departments. This resulted in the decision to elevate the oversight of our safety and security functions to our chief operating officer (COO), a cabinet level position, and chief of police. We believe this change strengthens our safety and security operations,” Smith said, in a written statement released Wednesday evening.
Hall made about $144,000 in fiscal year 2017, according to a state database of public employee salaries.
About the Author
