Chicago school board’s investigation into media leaks fails to yield results

An investigation into who was responsible for leaking internal Chicago Board of Education information to the media was unable to reach a conclusion, according to a report released Thursday.

Two board members, Ellen Rosenfeld and Che “Rhymefest” Smith, refused to participate in the investigation, while the other 18 board members swore to investigators that they were not the source of the leaks, the law firm hired to conduct the investigation wrote in the report. The investigators did not have subpoena power.

Rosenfeld told WBEZ in response to questions Friday that she didn’t participate because she did not leak information. “I knew it wasn’t me,” she wrote in a text. Smith said he didn’t leak information, either. He previously told WBEZ that he thought it was inappropriate for board members to share confidential information.

One of the leaks under scrutiny was the revealing of the finalists for the Chicago Public Schools CEO position to a WBEZ reporter. The other leak was to Fox-32 Chicago reporter Paris Schutz, who posted a communication sent to the board about a special meeting to raise property taxes. Schutz has since moved to NBC-5 Chicago.

Board President Sean Harden said he was disappointed that the investigation that he launched didn’t reveal the source of the leaks. But he said he still thought the review was important.

“There was clear evidence that people were perpetuating their own agendas, and it was just counter to board business,” said Harden, who was appointed by Mayor Brandon Johnson and is not seeking to be elected to the post in November. Sharing the confidential information, he said, is not in the best interest of the board or the community.

The law firm, Salvatore Prescott Porter & Porter, has been paid $59,202 so far this school year, CPS records show.

Several board members were unhappy with the investigation.

Rosenfeld said she doesn’t think communicating with the press warrants an investigation as the “press is one of our greatest allies.” She said the process was “a distraction and a waste of taxpayer money.”

“The people of Chicago sent me here to ensure their kids receive a high quality, rigorous joyful education not to sit in closed door interrogations,” she wrote in a text.

Jessica Biggs, who represents a South Side district, called the investigation “petty politics.” Biggs is running for school board president.

“This Board should be focused on student achievement and growth,” she said. “This ‘investigation’ is an example of everything that is misguided about our current leadership.”

While Biggs and other school board members wanted to keep the CEO finalists confidential, many school districts release their names and qualifications to allow the public to vet them.

Board members had signed a non-disclosure agreement to keep the CEO search confidential. But as investigators acknowledged in the report, other people outside the board knew the finalists’ names, and it was unclear whether board members were the source of the leak.

Within hours of WBEZ and the Chicago Sun-Times publishing the names of the finalists, one of them withdrew from consideration. That resulted in the search process dragging on for many months. Eventually, the board hired CEO Macquline King, who initially was not a finalist and was serving as the interim leader.

Meanwhile, public notice about the special school board meeting that was the subject of the other leak was posted 12 hours after Schutz published the communication. News of the special meeting drew ire because it was held a few days before Christmas, and some critics accused the mayor and his allies on the board of trying to sneak in the vote when no one was paying attention.

In discussing why these leaks might have occurred, the report points to the current makeup of the board. Currently, it is a hybrid board with 10 elected members and 11 appointed by the mayor.

“Whatever the motivation of the leaks, all witnesses agreed that the leaks made the Board look divided and untrustworthy,” according to the report. “Relatedly, many witnesses commented on the tension and distrust within the Board between the appointed and elected members.”