St. Louis mayor names transitional school board member

ST. LOUIS (AP) -- Mayor Francis Slay will formally announce Thursday that his pick for the St. Louis Schools' transitional board is Melanie Adams.

Slay is expected to announce the choice at a news conference. He named Adams on his Web site overnight.

The three-person board is scheduled to take over the St. Louis school district Friday.

Adams, whose parents were public school teachers, was the first executive director of Teach for America when it came to St. Louis.

She has also been active in the formation and leadership of Metropolis St. Louis and St. Louis Community College Foundation. She works for the Missouri History Museum.

The State Board of Education voted in March to strip the St. Louis district of accreditation, saying it came up short on academic and financial standards. A three-member board -- appointed by the governor, mayor and aldermanic president -- is to manage the schools.

The governor's appointee is homebuilder Rick Sullivan. The third member has not yet been named.

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On the 'Net:

Mayor Francis Slay's Web site: http://www.mayorslay.com/