Romeoville Educator Under Investigation: Chicago Board Of Ed.

ROMEOVILLE, IL — In their 2019 inspection report, The Chicago Board of Education accused a Special Education Classroom Assistant (SECA) working in Chicago Public Schools of lying about his address. According to the Board's Office of the Inspector General (OIG), the individual claimed he was a Chicago resident when, in fact, he lives in Romeoville. This is in violation of Chicago Public Schools' residency policy, which states that all employees must reside full-time within Chicago city limits.

The inspection report claimed the SECA lied about his residency in order to get his son into free CPS Pre-K classes at the elementary school where he worked. It also claimed a false Chicago address was listed on his son's Pre-K enrollment file.

"... [the SECA] brought his son from Romeoville to the CPS school where [he] worked to attend the free all-day pre-K that was not available to the public and which the staff members should not have received," the report claimed.

The report also said that this incident was only one part of a larger investigation into the elementary school where the SECA worked. Five additional educators at the school were allowed by the Principal to keep their children in on-site Pre-K classes all day, despite the general public only being allowed to register their children for either morning or afternoon classes. Chicago's Office of Early Childhood Education sometimes makes allowances for full-day Pre-K enrollment, but the report claims none of the educators under investigation went through the office's enrollment process.

"...based on the evidence uncovered in the investigation, the Office of the Inspector General determined that, at a minimum, four staff members had a total of five children regularly attending both pre-K sessions during the 2016–17 and 2017–18 school years, one staff member had a child intermittently attend both pre-K sessions during the 2016–17 and 2017–18 school years and one staff member had a child attend both sessions during the 2014–15 school year," the report said.

The report said that the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) recommended disciplinary action - up to and including termination - for all six employees who took advantage of extra Pre-K enrollment. The SECA who allegedly lied about his Chicago residency received harsher judgement; the report recommended that the apparent Romeoville resident be immediately fired and a 'Do Not Hire' mark be placed on his CPS personnel file.

Jesús Canchola Sánchez, a spokesperson for Service Employees International Union Local 73 - the union that represents all SECAs working in Chicago - said the union may afford the accused Romeoviller some protection, depending on when he began working for CPS.

"The policy states that if the person started [employment] on or after November 1996, then the residency policy applies to them fully. That means if this person is found to have lied... we have to follow what's in the contract," Sánchez said. "There's nothing in the contract that would help us help this individual. But if that person started... before the residency policy [took effect], then the residency policy doesn't apply to their position."

The Principal who allegedly allowed these unregistered Pre-K enrollments to occur also faces disciplinary action. She resigned in the wake of the investigation; the report indicated that the Board is still considering whether or not to place a 'Do Not Hire' mark in her file.

The report indicated that the Board of Education is still considering the proper course of action to take on all of these matters moving forward.

Neither the Board nor the OIG immediately responded to Patch's request for further comments on the investigations.