Education
Arthur Ferdinand to APS Superintendent: “See, there’s hope” for you
Leading a big-city school district can be a high-pressure, high-turnover position. The average tenure is just over three years.
Earlier this week, Fulton County Tax Commissioner Arthur Ferdinand gave Atlanta school superintendent Meria Carstarphen, on the job for about a year and a half, some encouragement.
Ferdinand knows about longevity in public office. The AJC has been digging into his operations for years, exposing how he earns nearly $400,000 through extra fees, how he profits off tax liens and how his practice of selling liens to private collectors has cost taxpayers millions.
On Monday he visited the Atlanta school board to explain the taxation process. It was the first time in about 18 years he’d made the trip, he told the board.
Wow, 18 years, Carstarphen mused. “You people do stick around,” she told him.
“See there’s hope,” Ferdinand told her.
Last year, Carstarphen was recruited for a superintendent’s post in Los Angeles. She wasn’t interested. I’m committed to Atlanta, she told the AJC.
