District 75

Ketler Louissaint

District 75 Superintendent

Ketler Louissaint is currently the Superintendent of District 75 in the New York City Department of Education. His career in the NYC DOE started over thirty years ago as a Paraprofessional at the Queens School for Career Development. He served as Teacher and dean of students within the same organization. At the urging of many supervisors and colleagues, he re-entered college and earned a second Masters in Administration and Supervision from Bank Street College of Education. Shortly thereafter, he was offered an Assistant Principal position at 75Q224. He moved on to become Principal at the Brooklyn School for Career Development. In 2006, he joined the District Office and the Superintendent’s Leadership Team as a Local Instructional Superintendent/Network Leader and then as a Borough Field based Liaison until January 2016. While working as a Local instructional Superintendent, he also served as the Director of Transition Services in District 75 for two years. All of the abovementioned experiences increased his knowledge base, provided various insights and continued opportunities to support NYC students, families and the staff who serve them.

In January 2016, he became Superintendent of District 75. The first African American to ever hold that position. As such, he is in charge of overseeing the daily running and administration of 61 school organizations, which are dispersed at about 375 different buildings, and to ensure the district office runs efficiently, effectively and make sure they meet all the goals set forth.

Ketler’s commitment to making a difference in the population he serves is evident in the delivery of the service his team provides. He’s always been inspired to provide students with special needs access to services and resources that will empower and prepare them for post-secondary options. His “calling” was confirmed the first time he entered a classroom of students with disabilities as a young paraprofessional. From that point, he has always felt a great deal of pride and satisfaction in the collaborative work that he has engaged in with my colleagues and the inspiration that the students have always provided him.

As the Superintendent of District 75, Ketler always wanted to build on the achievements of his predecessors, while expanding efforts toward improvement and excellence in education. Student safety remains a top priority. He aims to strengthen the ties with families by including them in the decisions that affect their children’s lives. Through collaborative leadership and the great support of his team, he continues to improve the district from within by providing schools with the tools, resources and training they need to accelerate student learning and to prepare the students for least restricted environments, including college and careers. Furthermore, today, District 75 is a hub of information for all stakeholders, dedicated to increasing access to learning through 21st century technologies and facilitating a shift in service delivery, expectations and mindset. We continue to work hard and smart to afford students and families more than they hoped for.

Ketler was born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti and immigrated to the United States in 1987. He grew up in a family of six children which includes four sisters and a brother. When he is not working, he enjoys reading and watching documentaries. In addition, he enjoys playing tennis and pool with his son and friends. Furthermore, he likes to experience the culinary diversity of the eclectic restaurants our beautiful city is known for, watch a Broadway show and travels. In high school student, he attended the Petit Seminaire College St. Martial, a private Catholic high school dedicated to affording students a Catholic education. He is a lover of languages and studied many during his high school years. He is fluent in Haitian-Creole, English, French and Spanish.