Beatrice B. Byrd was appointed on September 25, 2013, by Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg. Ms. Byrd is the former President of the Red Hook West Resident Association. Previously, Ms. Byrd served in various capacities within the former New York City Board of Education, including as an 8th grade English and Social Studies teacher; an Assistant Principal; and a Neighborhood Literacy Coordinator for Community School District 15. Ms. Byrd has attended various institutions of higher learning – Hunter College, New York University, Cornell University, and Columbia's Teachers College, where she pursued a doctoral degree in History and Philosophy of Education.