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Parents and LSC chair ask Chicago Board to place Inter American principal on leave amid safety and governance allegations
Summary
Parents and the LSC chair at Inter American Magnet School urged the Board to remove or place Principal Juan Carlos (name variably transcribed) on leave, alleging repeated failures to communicate with families, implementation of an unauthorized budget, failures to report incidents to DCFS, teacher reassignments and retaliation, and asked for formal notification to families and staff about an investigation.
Multiple speakers during public comment asked the Board to take action concerning leadership at Inter American Magnet School.
Maria Luisa O'Garte, a CPS parent, said the principal at Inter American Magnet School (referred to in the transcript as 'Juan Carlos Saez') had not met with the sanctuary team and had ignored repeated requests from families and the network chief. ‘‘We have urged you to remove him so that students are not subjected to continued poor leadership,’’ she said.
Dr. Julie Wexler, chair of the Inter American Magnet School Local School Council, said the LSC approved charges to remove the principal more than a year ago and alleged that in 2024 the principal ‘‘implemented his own budget rather than the one voted upon by the LSC. This directly violated his contract in Illinois state law,’’ as she stated in public comment. Wexler also alleged safety concerns, failures to report mandated incidents to DCFS, reassignment of six teachers without clear rationale and retaliation against staff. She asked the board to ‘‘please place principal Dias on leave, and please update parents and staff who, to this day, have received no formal notice from CPS that principal Dias has been under formal investigation and that the final outcome is pending.’’
Speakers used multiple spellings when naming the principal (transcript includes 'Saez,' 'Zayas,' and 'Dias'). The meeting record contains repeated parental and LSC allegations but does not contain a formal board action on the principal’s employment; the public comment concluded with the requests above and no immediate, recorded board directive in the special meeting minutes.
