At the January 22, 2010 special meeting of the Milwaukee Board of School Directors, Dr. Gregory Thornton was elected to lead Milwaukee Public Schools as the new Superintendent of Schools. The appointment of Dr. Thornton will be effective on July 1, 2010, upon the retirement of the current MPS Superintendent, William Andrekopoulos.
Dr. Thornton will be coming to Milwaukee from his position as Superintendent of Chester Upland School District in Chester, Pennsylvania. He was appointed to that position almost three years ago by the Governor of Pennsylvania. Since joining the Chester Upland School District, his focus has been on raising student achievement, revising and upgrading the strategic plan, and monitoring progress. Thornton instituted a campaign to market the school district utilizing different methods to engage the community.
Dr. Thornton’s extensive background includes experience as: the chief academic officer in Philadelphia; deputy superintendent in Montgomery County Public Schools, Maryland; assistant superintendent in Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Public Schools, North Carolina; and the director of secondary schools for the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Public Schools, North Carolina.
As the director of secondary schools in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Public Schools, Thornton worked to develop initiatives to address issues of diversity and minority achievement, instructional leadership, programs and services for students with disabilities, and school organization and programs.
President Bonds is enthusiastic about welcoming Dr. Thornton as the new MPS Superintendent of Schools and states, “I firmly believe that Dr. Thornton’s prior experiences in large urban districts make him the right match for Milwaukee.”
