DeKalb Schools loses fourth spokesperson in less than six months

R. Scott Belzer (Courtesy DeKalb County School District)

R. Scott Belzer (Courtesy DeKalb County School District)

The DeKalb County School District lost its fourth spokesperson in six months recently, officials said.

R. Scott Belzer had been a communications specialist with the district, often serving as a public spokesman and responding to media inquiries, since December 2017. He came to the school district from The Champion Newspaper, where he was a reporter.

Belzer's departure is the fourth since April, when Superintendent Steve Green eliminated the department's top two positions. At the time, he said the roles of chief communications and community relations officer and director of strategic communications and marketing were eliminated to provide "a more efficient and effective communications effort guided by our strategic plan."

Eileen Houston-Stewart and Andre Riley, who held those roles, respectively, did not stay on with the district when their contracts ended June 30. Former communications specialist Shumuriel Ratliff left the district this summer for Fulton County Schools.