LaTanya McDade

LaTanya D. McDade (born 1973) is the first African American and first woman to serve as superintendent of Prince William County Public Schools in Virginia.

Career

Chicago Public Schools Starting in 1998, McDade served as a middle-school teacher for the Chicago Public Schools. McDade went on to get promoted to Assistant Principal of the Keller Regional Gifted Center in July 2002 and eventually, Principal, in July 2006.

In May 2012, McDade would take on the role of Chief of Schools, working in the central office of Chicago Public Schools. In this position, she facilitated a 9.7% networkwide increase in reading and 5.2% in mathematics.

Prince William County Public Schools Since joining PWCS, McDade has improved the on-time graduation rate. For the school year of 2023-24, 94.3% of students graduated on time, a 2.6% increase over the previous year. McDade has also reduced “chronic absenteeism by 5.4%.”

In 2024, McDade’s contract was extended until June 30, 2028. Her salary was increased to $387,994, 6% more than 2023.

Research and initiatives During her tenure as chief education officer of Chicago Public Schools, McDade supported many research programs devoted to improving education nationwide. The research highlighted that young women’s grades were higher compared to their male classmates in the ninth-grade level (pp. 2–4). McDade also supported research around attendance levels as young as kindergarten, and the strong impacts that absenteeism can have on young children.

Other positions held McDade volunteers at several different organizations nationwide. She is a member at Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority. McDade served on the board for Chicago State University in 2019 after being appointed by Illinois governor J. B. Pritzker.

McDade sits on the board of directors for 1EdTech Consortium, a nonprofit dedicated to increasing the use of trusted technology in the role of education. McDade also sits on the board of directors for Heart of America since June 2023, a nonprofit that improves equity in classrooms nationwide.

Awards and recognition In January 2024, McDade was named Region IV Superintendent of the Year after a unanimous nomination by her Region IV colleagues. McDade has also been given several honors, including being named in Northern Virginia Magazine’s 50 Most Influential People of 2024.

She was also given the 2022 Citizen of the Year Award for the Pi Lambda Lambda chapter of Omega Psi Phi fraternity. and the ‘Chicago Defender’ Women of Excellence award in 2019 during her time at Chicago Public Schools.