Cleveland teachers are putting their faith in a new leader ahead of a school year filled with upheaval for students and teachers triggered by the consolidation of dozens of Cleveland public schools.

Errol Savage, a school librarian, ousted Shari Obrenski, who has served as president of the Cleveland Teachers Union (CTU) for the last six years. Savage attracted 1,610 votes to Obrenski’s 1,438, according to vote tally sheets shared by Savage. Total turnout was around 75% for the 4,300-member union. Savage will be sworn in on April 9. 

“I appreciate the trust and confidence the members have shown to me,” he told Signal Cleveland. “My immediate next first steps are to continue hearing the membership and continue communicating with the membership. And really, I look forward to hitting the ground running in speaking to the district.”

In his campaign, Savage had criticized Obrenski for not ensuring that teachers were more involved in the drafting of the school consolidation plan, since they will be the people to implement it. He pledged during the campaign to more aggressively look out for the union and said he isn’t afraid to use the media to rally public support for teachers. He told Signal Cleveland his first priority is figuring out the “nuts and bolts” of how the closures will work. 

“We need to develop a plan now,” he said. “So that parents will come and say, ‘We’re going to enroll our kids.’ So that kids will come and they will show up. So that they will be safe. So that they will have opportunities they want to engage in.” 

The election was held during a time when many members of the union, including teachers, paraprofessionals, school nurses, psychologists and instructional aides, face uncertainty as the district’s building consolidations will shuffle hundreds of staff to new buildings while adding dozens of new programs. 

Both Savage and Obrenski have said they think the district needed to close or consolidate some under-enrolled schools. But both have also been highly critical of what they say is a lack of specificity in the district’s plan. 

School consolidations are not the only change Savage will have to tackle as union president. Next year, the union will renegotiate its collective bargaining agreement with the district. 

Shari Obrenski led teachers through the pandemic

Obrenski worked as a history teacher for 22 years. She assumed the CTU presidency in 2020 and shepherded the union through the pandemic and challenges of virtual learning. Savage, a 25-year veteran of the district, has himself experienced uncertainty familiar to many members during building closures in the mid-2000s. The past two years he served on the union’s leadership team. 

“The members have spoken. I wish my opponent the best,” Obrenski wrote in a statement to Signal Cleveland. “It has been the honor of my lifetime to be the CTU President and to serve the members, children, and families of Cleveland.”

Despite heavy social media campaigning, Savage’s win did not translate into downballot success for others running on his slate. Nearly all of the members of the challenger slate lost to incumbents who belonged to Obrenski’s executive board.