April 26--Mayor Rahm Emanuel denied any role in the abrupt ouster of a Lakeview elementary school principal who's been an outspoken critic of the mayor and Chicago Public Schools.
"I do not get involved in a personnel decision," Emanuel said, adding that he has worked to eliminate political considerations in city hiring as part of the federal Shakman decree. "I can understand if I'm getting blamed, but I'm just being clear, I'm adhering to the Shakman decree."
Blaine Elementary School's local school council officially condemned Troy LaRaviere's reassignment Monday, saying in a statement that its members were "outraged that CPS has removed our award-winning principal without due process." LaRaviere's supporters planned to rally at the school Monday evening.
CPS chief education officer Janice Jackson, who appeared with the mayor at an event at Dunbar High School, said it would be improper to discuss the specifics of LaRaviere's ouster before meeting with parents at the school Monday.
"We're actually speaking to parents tonight to answer all their questions, and I believe as the most important stakeholders in this situation, it would be unfair to comment further without, you know, giving them their opportunity to ask questions and figure things out," Jackson said.
The school council said LaRaviere's abrupt ouster undermined its authority to hire and evaluate Blaine's principal.
"CPS circumvented these core responsibilities by blindsiding the LSC with this decision when it knew that most members would be out of town for spring break, and denied us the opportunity to have a meaningful voice in our principal's temporary replacement," the school council's statement said.
Some Blaine parents -- along with community members organized by groups that oppose standardized testing and are allied with the Chicago Teachers Union -- said the timing of LaRaviere's removal suggested a "political calculation" by Emanuel as the former principal seeks to lead the Chicago Principals and Administrators Association labor group.
"If there's no cause for dismissal, the unelected (Chicago Board of Education) is simply trampling on the right of our democratically elected (school council) to determine who Blaine's principal is," Catherine Francis, a Blaine parent, said in a statement. "If there is a legitimate cause, why didn't they inform him of it last week?"
LaRaviere has said "no reason was provided" for his dismissal, and took to his website last week to call on his supporters to demand answers from the school district.
"I STILL HAVE NOT BEEN INFORMED OF THE CHARGES AGAINST ME," LaRaviere wrote last week. "At this point, this should be at the core of any effort to support my case. Any protest or other efforts should focus on forcing CPS to tell me what they're charging me with."
CPS said LaRaviere was summoned to attend a meeting last week to discuss his employment status, but he did not show up.
The district also has said LaRaviere would receive a "pre-suspension hearing" to determine if there is basis to suspend him without pay, pending a hearing with the Illinois State Board of Education.
LaRaviere was reprimanded by the district last year after a CPS inspector general probe found he violated CPS' ethics codes barring "improper political activity" in his work in support of Cook County Commissioner Jesus "Chuy" Garcia's bid to unseat Emanuel.
The school board last year issued a "warning resolution" to LaRaviere for his vocal opposition to a controversial standardized test and "insubordination" for a confrontation with a board member. LaRaviere's role in a campaign ad for Democratic presidential candidate and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders was the subject of a separate ethics inquiry by the CPS inspector general, though CPS would not say if that was a factor in LaRaviere's dismissal from Blaine.
Blaine's school council statement did not explicitly call for LaRaviere's reinstatement, as some of the principal's supporters have done. Instead the school council asked the district to transfer leadership to Blaine's assistant principals "until the situation with Principal LaRaviere is resolved."
CPS has instead said retired Principal Pedro Alonso will serve as Blaine's interim principal.
Asked again Monday whether Blaine parents should have been informed of the thought process behind removing LaRaviere before it happened, Emanuel cut off a reporter's question and moved on to accept questions from others at the news conference.
jjperez@tribpub.com
jebyrne@tribpub.com
