Table of Contents
ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Melanie Kay-Wyatt, who led Alexandria City Public Schools until last month, has taken on two new roles in education, according to the firm that hired her and a post on an education community website.
Kay-Wyatt is listed as senior adviser to the state superintendent on agencywide school improvement at the Virginia Department of Education, and as a superintendent-in-residence at ILO Group, a national education consulting firm.
ILO Group's website describes her as holding both roles, along with a position as a coach for Virginia Commonwealth University's Leadership Coaching Lab.
Neither VDOE nor ILO Group has issued an announcement about the appointments. The Alexandria Brief has asked VDOE to confirm the role, describe its responsibilities and provide a start date and salary.
The appointments were reported Tuesday by the Alexandria Times, which cited an Aug. 24 post on CelebratED, a site operated by an organization called The Worthy Educator that publishes submitted announcements of educators' career news.
What the roles involve
ILO Group describes itself as a firm supporting education decision-makers, with services in leadership development, capacity building and artificial intelligence. It runs a research effort called the Superintendent Research Project.
VDOE's school improvement work involves support for divisions and schools identified as needing assistance under the state's accountability system. The department is due to release School Performance and Support Framework ratings — the state's school accountability results — in October.
Kay-Wyatt's ILO biography describes her as a nationally recognized education leader with a 30-year career, and notes she was the first Black woman appointed to lead ACPS. It credits her with launching the Academies of Alexandria and founding what it calls Virginia's first district-level family and community engagement center.
The biography says she will conclude her ACPS tenure in September — a reference to the original timeline, before the School Board voted Aug. 12 to move her departure up from Oct. 1.
How she left ACPS
Kay-Wyatt announced in March that she would step down. The School Board characterized the departure as a retirement and said at the time she would remain in the job until Oct. 1.
She went on leave June 22. Then-Board Chair Michelle Rief told the community two days later that Kay-Wyatt was away because of a matter that arose unexpectedly, and asked that her privacy be respected. The board had appointed three senior administrators — Pierrette Finney, Clinton Page and Grace Taylor — to act on her behalf.
In August, Harris said the leave was related to multiple personal matters, that Kay-Wyatt had resumed a more active role in division matters beginning Aug. 3 and that she had not returned full time. Taylor served as the primary superintendent's designee throughout.
On Aug. 12, at a special meeting lasting 33 minutes, the board voted 6-0 to modify her separation agreement and move her resignation date to that evening, effective immediately. Three of the nine members were absent. The board then appointed Taylor as acting superintendent, and Taylor took the oath of office after the meeting.
"We wish her well on her retirement after 30 years of service in public education," the board said in a statement.
Applications for the permanent superintendent position closed the same day. The board is conducting a national search with Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates.
Board Chair Christopher Harris told the ACPS community on Sept. 1 that the search had drawn candidates from across the country and that the board would interview them over the coming weeks. He said the process is confidential and candidates will not be identified publicly, and that the board planned to provide another update before October. Harris also confirmed that Taylor did not apply for the permanent job.
Kay-Wyatt became acting superintendent of ACPS in 2022 and was appointed to the permanent position later that year. In 2025 she was named Region Four Superintendent of the Year by the Virginia Association of School Superintendents.
Ryan Belmore is an Alexandria resident and the founder and publisher of The Alexandria Brief. Send tips, feedback, and story ideas to ryan@alexandriabrief.com.
