No one is saying why exactly they're looking into Harvard Elementary School Principal Shelby Calabrese.
In a statement to ABC13, the district claims Harvard Elementary School is not a candidate for the superintendent's New Education System, but parents are not convinced.
On Wednesday, parents outside of the school told ABC13 they're concerned about their principal being put on leave because no one is providing them a reason for it.
"It's anxiety-provoking," Harvard Elementary parent Mary Ann Vaeth said. "We received an email-- I think it was Monday night-- about it, and it's pretty concerning because we've been seeing it within the district at several other schools."
Tensions are high at an elementary school in the Heights, where the principal is under investigation and on administrative leave just a few weeks into the new school year.
The school district won't confirm the status of the personnel issue or investigation. Instead, they sent Eyewitness News a generic statement about the culture it upholds their employees to.
Full statement:
HISD cannot comment on the status of any specific personnel issue or investigation. However, as a District, we are committed to building a high-performance culture focused on student achievement for all our employees. As part of the culture, we expect our employees to show up for their scheduled workday. We expect every employee to respect the directives of their supervisors, and every employee knows they must conduct themselves in a way that advances the work of their school and the District. When any employee fails to meet these basic expectations, it is standard practice to put them on leave while HR completes an investigation into their behavior. We know any transition in school leadership feels disruptive to the school community, and we can assure the Harvard Elementary School community that there are not going to be changes to program offerings (e.g. IB), and given its track record of solid academic performance, Harvard Elementary School is not a candidate for the New Education System.
Concerned parents say it's not enough of a response.
"Those are the rumors," Harvard Elementary parent Toodie Larson said. "The speculation is that she was pushing back against doing NES and that the district does not like that even though they're the ones who put her here."
The district stands firm that Harvard Elementary is not a candidate for NES but parents tell ABC13 they have started to see changes this new school year.
One thing is certain, Harvard Elementary parents say they won't stop fighting for their principal or their International Baccalaureate, IB, program-- a program that focuses on other aspects of academics and student development past testing.
"The school very much supports her and is very happy with Dr. C and the things she's done for us, and the way we feel like she gets our IB program, and the way she works with the PTA and the parents and students. So we're just all kind of shocked about this," Larson said.
The parents plan to show up at the next school board meeting in large numbers to speak out against NES and their principal being placed on leave.
ABC13 has reached out to the principal for comment but has not heard back.
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