Atlanta School Board Appoints Bryan Johnson as Superintendent

The Atlanta School Board voted unanimously Monday to make Bryan Johnson the district’s next superintendent.

A Nashville native, Johnson was named Tennessee’s Superintendent of the Year in 2021 and was a finalist for National Superintendent of the Year. Johnson most recently served as executive vice chancellor and chief strategy officer at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (UTC).

Johnson will take over a little more than a year after the school board decided to part ways with former Superintendent Lisa Herring. Interim Superintendent Danielle Battle will remain with Atlanta Public Schools through the end of August to help with the transition, the district said. Johnson will be sworn in Aug. 5.

Johnson said his priorities include continued efforts to improve student performance in literacy, special education, mathematics and college and career readiness.

“Atlanta is a workplace destination and I look forward to working collaboratively with the board to ensure our students are prepared for their futures,” Johnson said in a prepared statement.

The board announced on June 18 that Johnson was the sole finalist for the position, but state law requires it to hold a two-week vetting period before taking a final vote. Atlanta took three weeks to do so. During that time, Johnson met with community members in a series of six public meetings in different parts of the district.

Participants wasted no time detailing the problems facing different groups in the district, from lack of resources at some schools to special education issues to concerns about safety, the district budget and chronic absenteeism. Johnson told them he takes their concerns seriously, but he also tries to manage expectations.

“I don’t know if I told you this, but I didn’t come here without a cape,” he said at a meeting at Benjamin E. Mays High School on June 27.

Johnson said he planned to use feedback from the town hall meetings to help him craft a plan for his first 100 days in office. He didn’t provide many details, but promised to “get down to business.”

“There’s an undeniable sense of urgency around student success,” he said at a meeting at Midtown High School on June 24. “We want to be able to operate with a level of focus and precision that allows kids to succeed, and that success is rippled throughout the district.”

Johnson was hired to lead Hamilton County Schools in June 2017. He resigned in August 2021 with three years left on his contract. From there, he became chief transformation officer at logistics company US Xpress Enterprises Inc.

He also worked for 10 years in the Clarksville-Montgomery County school system, northwest of Nashville.

In introducing Johnson as the sole finalist, Atlanta School Board Chairwoman Erika Mitchell praised his tenure in Hamilton County, crediting him with improving academic achievement, boosting teacher retention and building partnerships between schools and businesses.

“He fits our leadership profile,” Mitchell recently told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “The community board had the opportunity to interview him. They gave us positive feedback, which is critical, and the board unanimously decided he would be the best person to lead our district.”