A former state lawmaker who was an architect of landmark school improvement legislation in Massachusetts is set to become the superintendent of the Pittsburgh public schools next week.
The school board of the 35,000-student Pennsylvania system voted 6-2, with one abstention, late last month to hire Mark Roosevelt, a noneducator who nonetheless has extensive experience in school policy.
As a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives in the early 1990s, Mr. Roosevelt helped write a wide-ranging measure that increased funding for schools and imposed new policies aimed at increasing educational accountability.
Most recently, he served as the managing director of the Massachusetts Business Alliance for Education, a school improvement group. In 2003, he completed the Broad Urban Superintendents Academy, a 10-month, foundation-backed program that trains leaders from education and other sectors to serve as district chiefs.
