Cathleen Black: Woman Icon in Publishing

Cathleen Prunty “Cathie” Black was the former Chancellor of the New York City Schools replacing the long-time Chancellor Joel Klein. She was appointed by then New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg on November 9, 2010. Black was required to sign a waiver since she did not have the experience as school administrator which was required by the Education Department of the state of New York. After only 95 days in office, Black stepped down as Chancellor and was replaced by New York City Deputy Mayor Dennis Walcott.

Black was born on April 26, 1944 in Chicago, Illinois. She is an alumna of the Trinity College. She holds 10 honorary degrees from different universities.

For 15 years, Black worked with Hearst Corporation as its president. She was also the chairman of Hearst Magazine. Hearst Magazine is the publisher of over 20 titles in America, including O, The Oprah Magazine, ELLE, Esquire, Cosmopolitan, and Harper’s Bazaar. Black wrote Basic Black. She was also USA Today’s former president and publisher.