The Los Angeles Unified School District board voted unanimously to appoint Andrés Chait superintendent just three days after Alberto Carvalho resigned, making the acting leader’s time in the top job permanent. The fast transition follows Carvalho’s resignation
The morning it became official felt abrupt—three days after Alberto Carvalho resigned as superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District, the Board of Education moved quickly to name Andrés Chait the district’s next permanent leader.
The board announced its unanimous decision Wednesday. and it was made official during the board’s last scheduled meeting before August. Chait, who had been serving as acting superintendent since Feb. 27, stepped into the role with the kind of urgency that has followed LAUSD since Carvalho’s departure.
After the announcement, Chait said, “I firmly believe in leading with gratitude and never taking the work and support of others for granted. So I begin today in that spirit of gratitude. Thank you to the board for your faith in me and for this opportunity.”
He added. “I have always known that there is no greater accelerator of change and opportunity than the schoolhouse. and that is still true today. Throughout my career in various roles, that has remained my focus. How I can be of service and support to our students and families in accessing these opportunities. Please know that commitment has not changed.”.
Chait’s permanent appointment comes after a transition that began with Carvalho’s downfall after law enforcement activity. Chait had taken over as acting superintendent two days after the FBI raided Carvalho’s home and office on Feb. 27.
Law enforcement sources have confirmed the investigation includes a review of Carvalho’s actions related to a company hired to create an ill-fated AI chatbot. Carvalho has not been charged and maintains that he is innocent of wrongdoing.
The contrast between the two leaders has been immediate in how LAUSD officials, staff, and labor leaders describe their styles. Carvalho had 14 years of experience leading one of the nation’s largest school systems in Miami. He also built a national profile during his time in Los Angeles. carefully curating his appearances and becoming a familiar face in education conclaves and among national leaders. Carvalho took charge in LAUSD in February 2022.
Before that, in 2018, Carvalho accepted a job leading New York City’s school system before changing his mind and staying in Miami.
Chait, by comparison, has spent his career inside LAUSD. He is a district parent who started as a kindergarten teacher at Queen Anne Place Elementary School and rose gradually through the ranks. He has never worked in another school system. His experience in L.A. Unified includes a variety of roles: elementary school principal. regional superintendent. and most recently serving as director of operations—a non-academic function—for the entire district.
At board meetings, Chait’s presence has stood out for the way it differed from the usual superintendent staging. He was not among the senior officials seated directly behind the school board on the elevated stage. Instead. he was stationed in the back next to audiovisual equipment. off camera. frequently joking and interacting with district staff and community members. He also sometimes handled concerns directly with people who brought issues during the public hearing portion.
Over the last two years, Chait has presented periodically at board meetings, including on school safety.
School board President Scott Schmerelson announced the appointment after the board emerged from a closed session. “This board’s decision reflects the confidence in Mr. Chait’s leadership. his decades of service to Los Angeles Unified. and his demonstrated ability to guide the district during this period of transition. ” Schmerelson said. “Throughout his career. and most recently as acting superintendent. he has shown deep commitment to our students. families. employees and school communities.”.
The choice was also driven by work Chait was already doing—key tasks typically handled by a long-term superintendent. Those included finishing up a four-year strategic plan and selecting administrators to fill key senior positions.
On Tuesday, the Board of Education approved a four-year strategic plan with academic targets and measures of college, career and social-emotional readiness.
Chait also built support in a high-pressure labor moment. His trial-by-fire included a labor dispute that came within hours of a three-union strike that would have shut down the school system. Chait was a key participant in getting to a deal alongside Mayor Karen Bass.
Bass said in a City Hall news conference that evening that the cooperation helped make the difference. “It was wonderful to have the cooperation from the leadership of the district. from the superintendent. from the school board. from the entire school board. all of that … made a difference,” Bass said, referring to Chait after the all-nighter.
Labor leaders praised Chait at the time. Cecily Myart-Cruz, the outgoing president of United Teachers Los Angeles, said, “I want to give you a thanks, Supt. Chait, for showing humanity. Humanity. Humanity for seeing us, seeing the workers, and believing that you can get it across the finish line.”
Last week, Myart-Cruz had told an interviewer that Carvalho needed to be replaced and that Chait appeared to have the skills needed to take over, while saying she would prefer a formal selection process that included input from labor leaders and others.
Max Arias, executive director of Service Employees International Union Local 99, also praised Chait after the contract was settled. “I want to appreciate you … for coming into a very difficult situation and stepping in and showing leadership,” Arias said. “We are ready, our members are ready, to always give a chance to building relationship or partnership.”.
In an interview last week, Arias said Chait should be offered the job outright, arguing that a search process was unnecessary.
Maria Nichols. president of Associated Administrators of Los Angeles. praised Chait during an April City Hall gathering attended by union and district leadership. “Thank you so much for listening,” Nichols said. “I know the acting superintendent’s style — collaborative, listens. He takes action. He’s humane. and he wants the best for our students. because he’s a parent and has students in LAUSD.”.
But the budget under Chait’s new permanent tenure is already drawing friction from the start. The deals accepted by Chait have critics who contend they go beyond what the district can afford.
A $20.6-billion spending plan approved Tuesday incorporates layoffs of up to several hundred workers with due-process rights and perhaps 1,000 more without job protections. Over the next three years, officials project thousands of additional layoffs.
The spending plan for the 2026-27 school year is nearly $2 billion higher than last year’s figure of $18.8 billion. The district’s projected revenue is $18.6 billion, though that figure could rise based on promising state tax revenues.
To cover gaps. the district will use reserves. which may or may not be exhausted over the next two to three years. The increased spending is largely attributed to significant salary increases. maintaining health benefits amid rising costs. and expanding the number of part-time employees eligible for benefits.
Other pressures include the expiration of COVID-relief funds, inflation surpassing state funding increases, and steadily declining enrollment. L.A. Unified serves about 390,000 students in transitional kindergarten through 12th grade, roughly half the size of the district in the early 2000s.
The board did not immediately release details of Chait’s new superintendent contract, including the length of the term, saying it is not yet in final form.
Chait’s salary as acting superintendent was $395,867. He also receives $250 per month for expenses and for the use of a district car and driver for work-related activities. In his previous job as chief of school operations—held for about 20 months—Chait earned $278,205.
Carvalho’s salary was $440,000 per year, with an additional $50,000 paid annually into a retirement annuity. District officials have declined to say if Carvalho received a severance package. Carvalho’s predecessor as permanent superintendent, Austin Beutner, was paid $350,000 per year.
For many in LAUSD, the speed of the decision reflects a district in motion—one that is trying to stabilize leadership while navigating an investigation tied to an AI chatbot contract, a strained budget, and a labor history that only narrowly avoided a shutdown.
LAUSD Andrés Chait Alberto Carvalho superintendent FBI raid AI chatbot school board Los Angeles Unified Karen Bass labor dispute layoffs budget