Chicago, Ill./Rochester, N.Y.- Chicago Mayor-elect Rahm Emanuel has named Rochester City School District Superintendent Jean-Claude Brizard to head Chicago's public schools.
Emanuel said he considered about six or seven people when choosing for the job of schools' superintendent.
But the mayor-elect chose Brizard because he is an "experienced educator and proven manager."
Brizard replaces Ron Huberman, who resigned in November after Mayor Richard Daley said he would not seek another term.
Rochester School Board President Malik Evans said he learned Brizard took the Chicago job from a text message.
Rochester Mayor Tom Richards said he supported Brizard, but his tenure had its bumps in the road.
"If you look back over the last six months or so here, the system was not working," Richards said.
The mayor said the City and school district should do some soul searching as it moves ahead with replacing Brizard.
Rochester Teachers Association President Adam Urbanski has been vocal about his strained relationship with Brizard.
"If he has a tenure in Chicago that mirrors his experience in Rochester, than I feel sorry for Chicago," Urbanski said Monday. "If he has learned from his mistakes in Rochester, than he can actually do some good in Chicago."
In February, the teachers union voted it has no-confidence in Brizard to lead Rochester schools.
In a statement, Chicago's Teachers Union said it is justifiably skeptical of Emanuel's choice.
"Unfortunately, in terms of the future of Chicago's public school children, this looks like more of the same with people who are focused on failed quick fix public relations and privatizing schools for profit," CTU President Karen Lewis said.
The Rochester Board of Education will appoint an interim superintendent until a permanent one is hired.
When the school district last searched for a superintendent in 2007, it took one year for the board to hire Brizard.
