[3] She was hired as the chief education advisor for CPS in April 2012[2] and then named CEO by Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel six months later.

[citation needed] After high school, Byrd-Bennett began studying at Long Island University where she received a Bachelors of Arts in 1969.

[8] In 2012, federal agents began investigating Barbara Byrd-Bennett’s role in a $40 million textbook contract that was awarded while she worked in Detroit.

In April 2015, Byrd-Bennett took a personal leave as Chicago Public Schools CEO during an investigation into a $20.5 million no-bid contract that had been awarded to SUPES Academy, a professional development organization she used to work with as a consultant.

[12][13] On October 8, 2015, the US Attorney handling the case announced that Byrd-Bennett would plead guilty to charges that she set up a kickback scheme in which she steered no-bid CPS contracts worth more than $23 million to her former employer, SUPES Academy, which would pay her 10% of that amount.

Her former boss, the owner of SUPES, also promised Byrd-Bennett a job after she left her CPS post, trust accounts funded with $127,000 for each of her twin grandsons,[14] and other perks.

It was reported that the US Attorney's office found incriminating evidence against Byrd-Bennett, including an email to the SUPES owner that said, "I have tuition to pay and casinos to visit.