NEW YORK — David Banks, the head of New York City’s public school system, said Tuesday he will resign from his post at the end of the calendar year, the latest high-ranking departure from Mayor Eric Adams’ administration amid a growing federal criminal investigation.
The decision comes weeks after federal agents seized Banks’ phone, as well as the phones of the city’s police commissioner, two deputy mayors and a top adviser to Adams. Police Commissioner Edward Caban resigned earlier this month.
In a retirement letter shared with The Associated Press, Banks said he had already informed the mayor of his decision to retire this year, “after ensuring the school year had a good start.”
A former teacher, principal and founder of a network of all-boys public schools, Banks has led the city’s public school system since Adams took office in 2022.
The resignation made no reference to ongoing federal investigations into Adams’ senior aides, his relatives, campaign fundraising and possible influence selling.
Adams said in a statement that he is “extremely grateful and proud” of all that Banks has accomplished over the years leading the school system.
Banks’ brother Phillip is a former police officer who now serves as the city’s deputy mayor for public safety. His brother Terrence, a former supervisor in the city’s subway system, runs a consulting firm that promises to connect clients with top government stakeholders.
Earlier this month, federal investigators seized the cellphones of David and Philip Banks. The phones of several other high-ranking city officials, including Caban, were also seized.
David Banks lives in a house in Harlem with his partner Sheena Wright, the first deputy mayor and whose devices were also seized. He previously declined to talk about the search, telling reporters: “I can’t answer those questions.”
Federal prosecutors have declined to discuss the investigation publicly.
When Democrat Adams appointed David Banks as chancellor, he praised his friend as a “visionary, a leader, an innovator who has spent his life fighting for the welfare of students.”
Banks founded the Eagle Academy in 2004 to educate young black and Latino boys who he believed were often underserved by the education system.
Prior to his appointment as schools chancellor, Banks ran a foundation that raised funds for six Eagle Academy schools, one each in New York City and Newark, New Jersey.
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