Controversial Elmhurst D-205 Consultant Resigns

Elmhurst IL

03 September, 2021

8:00 AM

Description

ELMHURST, IL — A Chicago educator resigned as an $800-a-day consultant with Elmhurst School District 205 soon after the school board voted to hire him last week, the district confirmed Thursday. Jarvis Sanford, who has been an official with a network of Chicago schools, is under investigation by the Chicago Public Schools, the leader of a principals group says. On Thursday, Patch asked the district about Sanford's status, who has been accused of verbally abusing more than 20 Chicago school administrators. The school's spokeswoman, Beverly Redmond, responded. "Given the recent distraction related to his previous employment history, the consultant has since resigned, allowing the essential work of increasing learning opportunities for all students to continue," Redmond said in an email. Sanford has been with the Chicago-based Academy for Urban School Leadership, a network of 31 Chicago public schools with about 15,000 students. That's the previous employer of District 205's superintendent, Keisha Campbell, a York High School graduate who took the helm in July. In a December meeting of the Chicago Public Schools, Troy LaRaviere, president of the Chicago Principals and Administrators Association, accused Sanford of abusing a number of administrators over time. He said Sanford, an African American, used the N-word in the presence of witnesses, saying "You know, I'm a (N-word), right? I don't take any s--- from all you in this school." Patch wrote a story last week about the issue. At its regular meeting last week, the District 205 school board unanimously approved a consultant's contract with Sanford, with members Karen Stuefen and Chris Kocinski absent. The board typically posts the documents it approves to its website. But in this case, the district has yet to release the contract, despite numerous inquiries.