Investigator: Brooklyn Principal Mismanaged Funds For Years
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Mayor Bloomberg and his schools chancellor say the key to reforming the schools is empowering principals, and holding them accountable. But a case in Brooklyn raises the question of whether that policy has always been followed as an investigation shows one principal remained in charge for years, even though officials knew she was seriously mismanaging her budget. Now investigators say she was also engaged in fraud. NY1's Lindsey Christ filed the following report.It began with a tip about misused money and faked financial documents at PS 114 in Canarsie. Investigators say they found plenty of evidence against principal Maria Penaherrera -- but there was much more. They say while she was in charge, PS 114 racked up hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt.
"Everyone we spoke to mentioned how badly she was running the school, including one of the two consultants she had hired with the falsified bids. He said he had never seen more incompetence in the running of a school," said special schools investigator Richard Condon.
Penaherrera continued running the school for five years, even though the Department of Education admits it was no secret that she couldn't manage her budget. Her direct supervisor said she had known from day one that Penaherrera needed massive support to even function and "went crazy with the budget, spending money that she did not have."
Investigators say Penaherrera violated other rules, like rehiring a teacher who had been fired and paying for it with money meant for substitutes. They found check stubs showing school funds used for "glasses repair," "lost cell phone," tickets to a benefit dinner and a traffic ticket.
"This was really a lot of different issues," Condon said.
In 2006 she forgot to schedule the school graduation. In 2007, she kept a student out after his family filed a lawsuit saying he had been bound, gagged and locked in a closet by classmates. Teachers even chartered buses to their union headquarters to stage protests about her.
"Everyone was aware of her incompetence," Condon said.
In February 2009, Penaherrera was late to school when a carbon monoxide alarm went off. There was no safety plan, and she had left nobody in charge, so the school wasn't evacuated. Only then, did the DOE remove her as principal. She's still on the DOE payroll, although a spokesperson says they will try to fire her, now that they've learned of the fraud charges.
When the principal who replaced Penaherrara arrived, she realized the after-school program didn't have a permit. Investigators say the man running the program left a suitcase full of knock-off handbags on her desk, leading to more evidence of how business was done at PS 114.