George J. McKenna III

George J. McKenna III (born September 6, 1940) is an American politician and former educator who is a current member of the Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education for District 1 since 2014.[1] A former principal at Washington Preparatory High School, McKenna helped reform the school as the school had issues with gang violence, with his actions being re-enacted in the 1986 biographical film The George McKenna Story where he was portrayed by Denzel Washington.[2][3]

George J. McKenna III
McKenna III in 2015
Member of the LAUSD Board of Education for the 1st district
Assumed office
August 28, 2014
Preceded byMarguerite LaMotte
Personal details
Born (1940-09-06) September 6, 1940
New Orleans, Louisiana
Political partyDemocratic
Alma materXavier University (Ed.D, BMath)
Loyola Law School (M.A.)

Early life and education

McKenna was born in New Orleans, Louisiana on September 6, 1940, and attended Xavier University, getting a Bachelor of Mathematics and later a Doctor of Education. In 1962, he accepted a teaching position for the Los Angeles Unified School District while attending Loyola Law School, the University of California, Los Angeles, and California State University, Los Angeles.[4]

Career

High school principal and film

After arriving to Los Angeles, McKenna was a math teacher and was assigned as principal of Washington High School.[5] The school was plagued by low achievement score, high absenteeism and gang violence. Under McKenna's leadership, the school banned school violence and had low absentee rates.[2] Because of his efforts, a biographical television film was made documenting his story called The George McKenna Story, with Denzel Washington portraying him.[3]

In 1989, McKenna received the Congressional Black Caucus’ Chairman’s Award and was later inducted into the National Alliance of Black School Educators’ Hall of Fame in 1997.[6]

Superintendent of schools

In 1988, McKenna was hired to become the Inglewood Unified School District superintendent. After his hiring, McKenna was criticized by opponents for being arrogant and mismanaged the district.[7] In 1993, Inglewood's school board then announced that they would not renew the contract between them and McKenna, with the board voting 3-2 for no confidence.[8][9] In 1994, Compton Unified School District hired McKenna as deputy superintendent.[10]

Board of education
McKenna (right) with former councilmember Martin Ludlow and councilmember Heather Hutt in 2023.

In August 2014, McKenna announced that he was running for the LAUSD Board of Education District 1 seat to finish Marguerite LaMotte's term as LaMotte had died in December 2013.[11] LaMotte, like McKenna, had also been a principal at Washington Preparatory High, and McKenna and supporters had previously pressured the Board to appoint him after her death, with the Board instead choosing to hold a special election.[12] Although opponent Alex Johnson accused him of child molestation charges and the state take-over of the Compton and Inglewood school districts, widely condemned by supporters including Congresswomen Maxine Waters and Karen Bass, McKenna won the seat.[6][1] McKenna was sworn in on August 28, 2014, and was re-elected in the 2014 general election.[13][14] In 2023, McKenna announced that he would be retiring as a board member at the end of his term in 2024.[15]

References
  1. Folven, Edwin (August 15, 2014). "George McKenna wins District 1 seat". Park Labrea News & Beverly Press.
  2. "A Matter of Principal". Los Angeles Times. November 11, 1986.
  3. Szymanski, Mike (March 7, 2016). "A movie, a principal and a turnaround school: 30 years since 'The George McKenna Story'". LASchoolReport.
  4. "GEORGE MCKENNA, III". The HistoryMakers.
  5. "The New Bosses". Los Angeles Times. June 16, 2000.
  6. Bakewell Jr., Danny J. (July 24, 2014). "George McKenna Campaign Under Attack". Los Angeles Sentinel.
  7. Lacey, Marc (October 27, 1989). "After 1 Year in Office, Doubts Cloud Charisma of Supt. George McKenna : Chasing Elusive Dreams". Los Angeles Times.
  8. Fuetsch, Michele (September 16, 1993). "School Board Votes to Oust Superintendent : Education: The panel decides not to renew the contract of nationally known Supt. George J. McKenna III after the county appointed a fiscal overseer because of mismanagement". Los Angeles Times.
  9. Fuetsch, Michele (October 8, 1993). "A Hero Falls From Favor : Famed Inglewood School Supt. George McKenna on the Way Out". Los Angeles Times.
  10. Richardson, Lisa (May 5, 1994). "INGLEWOOD : McKenna Becomes Compton Deputy Supt". Los Angeles Times.
  11. "Community Rallies Around George McKenna for L.A. School Board". Los Angeles Sentinel. March 6, 2014.
  12. "Esteemed Educator George McKenna Enters Race for Los Angeles School Board". Los Angeles Sentinel. January 30, 2014.
  13. Miller, Kenneth D. (August 28, 2014). "An Emotional Dr. George McKenna is Officially Sworn In!!!". Los Angeles Sentinel.
  14. Blume, Howard (November 8, 2014). "Four L.A. school board members likely to face reelection challenges". Los Angeles Times.
  15. "Sentinel Exclusive: Dr. George McKenna Announces Retirement from LAUSD Board of Education". Los Angeles Sentinel. July 20, 2023.
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