The District of Columbia’s controversial schools chancellor, Michelle Rhee, is set to tie the knot over the Labor Day weekend. According to an Associated Press account, Rhee, 41, will marry hard-charging, first-term Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson, 44, who is also a former NBA star.
Johnson, Sacramento’s first African-American mayor, won that post in the Northern California city during the November 2008 elections. Johnson previously played point guard for the Phoenix Suns from the late 1980s to the late 1990s.
Rhee garnered the national spotlight two years ago in a Time magazine article that detailed her approach to reforming the District’s troubled school system. Since then, Rhee has gone on to achieve small steps toward reformation by removing inefficient teachers and negotiating a historic contract with the teachers union that will provide well-qualified instructors a whopping 20 percent pay over a five year period. That measure poises the District’s teachers to become the highest paid in the nation.
The couple has had a long distance relationship for the past couple years, with Johnson popping the question in October 2009 after they had seen A Streetcar Named Desire at the Kennedy Center, according to the AP. Johnson suggested they catch some night air and visit the Capitol. Rhee thought it was too cold but quickly gave in. As the pair braved the shivering weather, Johnson reached into his pocket and pulled out a ring.
Rhee was previously married to Kevin Huffman and they have two daughters.
Following their Sept. 4 nuptials, Johnson and Rhee plan on maintaining their jobs in their respective cities.
