By Michael Morton
While the educator was reinstated on the city Department of Education's payroll last week, he was assigned to IS 8 in Jamaica pending a final decision in his disciplinary hearing by an arbitrator.”What is this saying to us?” asked Meryl Parker, a parent who testified during the hearing on behalf of K'Tori. “You won the battle, but you have not won the war.”K'Tori was removed from his post days before school started and suspended. He was accused of tampering with his school's lottery, not turning in a report on time, trying to block the placement of a special education class, throwing papers at a supervisor and failing to follow procedures for ordering books while in charge of another school.During a session of the hearing two weeks ago, the arbitrator suggested he would find K'Tori guilty of some charges but innocent of others, said he was prepared to hand out a maximum penalty of a three-month suspension and recommended the educator be put back on the payroll. A final decision on K'Tori's fate was not expected until March 9, however.”We don't know where we stand right now,” Parker said at the meeting, a regularly scheduled gathering of the school's Parent Teacher Association. About three dozen parents attended.PS/IS 268 is in School District 29, but K'Tori was reassigned for now to IS 8, a school in neighboring District 28. While both schools are part of the larger Region 3 system, parents and other supporters questioned moving their beloved educator out of the district. They also noted that IS 8 is not equipped to handle K'Tori's physical disability, a leg injured in a car accident years ago.”It seems to me like they want to continue the chain of pain,” said Nathaniel Washington, the former president of School Board 29, a body replaced last year by a community education council composed of parents. During the disciplinary hearing, Washington testified that principals had been given latitude to fill their schools outside of the lottery if the need arose. He said Judith Chin, head of Region 3, did not like K'Tori because he was not a “yes-man” and wanted him removed.”The (schools) chancellor has given Chin a lot of latitude and she doesn't always know what she's doing,” Washington said. Parents at PS/IS 268 are hoping the arbitrator recommends that K'Tori be sent back to their school. Failing that, they sent a letter to Chin Feb. 11 seeking both a return of their principal and a reconciliation with district and region supervisors, some of whom have come under fire from K'Tori's supporters. They had not heard back from the Region 3 head as of Monday.Members of the community education council have expressed support for K'Tori but have said they are prohibited by council bylaws from becoming actively involved in personnel matters. Washington, however, said K'Tori's case could come into play in May, when many of the council members may seek re-election.For now, he and other officers from the disbanded school board have formed a non-profit advocacy group for parents and students named the Education and Political Advisory Committee, or E-PAC. While the group will not go out into the community seeking problems to solve, Washington said it would offer help on issues like the K'Tori case when approached. “We're there if you need us,” he said.Reach reporter Michael Morton by e-mail at news@timesledger.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 154.
