The DeKalb School Board has a new chairman. The board at its public meeting Wednesday voted 7-2 to elect Dr. Melvin Johnson to the post. Outgoing chair Dr. Eugene Walker announced his resignation Monday “to avoid becoming the focal point of the Thursday suspension hearing before the state Board of Education.”

Johnson is a retired DeKalb schools administrator and newly elected member of the board. He was voted chair without opposition. Board member Nancy Jester nominated Dr. Pam Speaks who declined, and both voted against Johnson.

The choice of Johnson to lead the board shifts the spotlight away from the veteran members heading into the state board hearing. The other new members are Jim McMahan and Marshall Orson. McMahan was recently voted vice chair.

The state board will decide whether to recommend that Gov. Nathan Deal remove the current board and appoint temporary replacements. DeKalb has been on accreditation probation since Dec. 17, after the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools issued a report that criticized the board’s leadership.