Janet Read Resigns From Cherokee School Board

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Cherokee County School Board Chair Janet Read has resigned from the position she’s held for nearly four years.

Read, who lives in Towne Lake, submitted her resignation Thursday evening at the board’s regular meeting to accept a position as community outreach liaison in Cherokee County for Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta.

The company does not allow employees to serve as elected officials, but the new job is a “blessing in and of itself,” she added.

An emotional Read thanked her sons, Lucas and Drew, her fellow board members and Cherokee County Superintendent of Schools Dr. Frank Petruzielo for helping and guiding her throughout her last 10 years of service.

She also said thanked the audience, the “tireless advocates” of the school system and its students.

Those residents, she added, have consistently attended school board meetings when topics of discussions were controversial enough to draw the attention of Atlanta television news crews or were benign interests that caught the eye of only a few citizens.

“Your faces have changed, but your dedication has not changed over the last 10 years...and it is an honor to represent you.”

Read was first elected in 2004 as the Post 4 representative and re-elected in 2008.

However, a controversial redistricting measure signed by Gov. Nathan Deal in 2012 changed the school board chair role to an elected position and drew Read out of the Post 4 seat. That prompted her to run for the newly created elected position in 2012, and she defeated challenger Danny Dukes in Republican primary.

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Photo: Janet Read, right, and Bobby Blount, assistant superintendent of accountability, technology and strategic planning. Credit: Cherokee County School District