CMSD Board of Education welcomes three new members

Three new members will join the Cleveland Metropolitan School District Board of Education this month, filling vacancies left after three members resigned over the summer.

Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb named new members: Caroline Peak, Jerry Billups and Rev. Ivory Jones III.

“Her fresh perspectives, commitment to education and commitment to our community will help us build on our progress and shape the future of CMSD,” Bibb wrote in a news release.

The CMSD Board of Education is the only school board in Ohio whose members are appointed by the mayor rather than elected. The new members will be sworn in prior to the next CMSD board meeting on Tuesday, December 10th.

Peak led the Collinwood branch of the Cleveland Public Library for 12 years before retiring earlier this year.

Peak also served on the Bond Accountability Commission, a nonprofit organization that oversees CMSD’s financing of construction projects. BAC members are appointed by the CMSD Board Chair and the Mayor. She is available for reappointment in June 2025.

Update: Peak is no longer a member of the Bond Accountability Commission.

Billups has worked in Cuyahoga County Juvenile Court for 15 years. He currently coordinates the court’s Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative, which connects young people involved in the system with support to reduce unnecessary incarceration.

Billups graduated from CMSD’s John Marshall High School. Three of his children currently attend CMSD schools and one has a CMSD degree. He is available for reappointment in June 2027.

Jones has been a pastor in Cleveland for more than 30 years. He is currently pastor of Grace Missionary Baptist Church in the Mt. Pleasant neighborhood. Jones is also a board member and state officer of the National Baptist Convention. He attended schools in Cleveland and East Cleveland and is a graduate of Shaw High School. He is available for reappointment in June 2027.