NYC Principal Ousted for ‘Pattern of Dishonesty’ Gets New High Paying DOE Job
By: Benyamin Davidsons
A city principal convicted of insurance fraud got a sweet new position with the Department of Education.
As reported by the NY Post, Oneatha Swinton, the former acting principal of Port Richmond High school in Staten Island, was called out for what school investigators called a “pattern of dishonesty.” She was found guilty of car insurance fraud, she improperly funneled $100,000 in school funds to a vendor, and she “failed to safeguard” 600 DOE computers, printers and laptops which disappeared during her tenure. Still, the DOE decided not to terminate employment of Swinton, 43, even though that was the recommended made by the Special Commissioner of Investigation for the city school. Instead, the DOE offered Swinton a hefty raise and an unspecified administrative position.
She would work for the Office of Safety and Youth Development with a $187,000 salary plus health and pension benefits, now earning $25,000 more than she made prior to her arrested in 2018 for insurance fraud. City officials refused to provide a job title or description for the new position. Since the promotion, Swinton has even launched her own bold fashion brand, ObyDezign, in her spare time. The website was hastily taken down after she was contacted by The Post. All this comes, as the cash strapped city schools have been forced into laying off teachers.
Swinton joined Port Richmond as its interim principal in June 2017. She had previously served as principal at John Jay High School since 2010. In November 2017, Swinton’s insurance scam became known and seven months later she was removed by the DOE from the position. In Dec. 2018, she pleaded guilty to registering two Lexus SUVs in Pennsylvania to avoid New York’s high insurance rates. She was sentenced to three years’ probation and ordered to pay $6,200 in restitution as well as an $800 fine.
As per the Post, the Special Commissioner of Investigation for city schools also found that at John Jay, Swinton had paid a total $100,000 in split payments — which is against purchasing regulations — to Tanya John, a DOE vendor and ex-principal in the Bronx, for “Saturday retreats” and overnight college trips, investigators say. Interestingly, it was John’s Pennsylvania home which Swinton had fraudulently listed on her driver’s license and registration, as per the PA Attorney General.
Additionally, the SCI also found Swinton failed to inventory over 600 DOE computers, laptops and printers when she was employed at John Jay HS. All those devices mysteriously vanished. “Swinton’s actions show a principal’s disregard for DOE rules and procedures and demonstrate a pattern of dishonesty,” Special Commissioner Anastasia Coleman wrote in her January 2020 report to then-Chancellor Carranza, recommending her dismissal.
Parent advocates were disappointed to say the least. “Why would you continue to A) trust her and B) put her in charge of any sort of student development? Who does she know?” asked Ellen McHugh, co-president of the Citywide Council on Special Education. “All this, and they reward her? Unbelievable,” said Annette Renaud, a former PTA president at John Jay HS. “It’s corrupt.”
Chancellor David Banks did not comment.
“Oneatha Swinton is a proven school leader and has been effectively performing as a supervisor for the Office of Safety and Youth Development since the DOE appointed her to that role,” said Craig DiFolco, spokesman for the Council of School Supervisors and Administrators, a Principal’s Union which fights to save the jobs of members accused of misconduct.
By: Benyamin Davidsons
A city principal convicted of insurance fraud got a sweet new position with the Department of Education.
As reported by the NY Post, Oneatha Swinton, the former acting principal of Port Richmond High school in Staten Island, was called out for what school investigators called a “pattern of dishonesty.” She was found guilty of car insurance fraud, she improperly funneled $100,000 in school funds to a vendor, and she “failed to safeguard” 600 DOE computers, printers and laptops which disappeared during her tenure. Still, the DOE decided not to terminate employment of Swinton, 43, even though that was the recommended made by the Special Commissioner of Investigation for the city school. Instead, the DOE offered Swinton a hefty raise and an unspecified administrative position.
She would work for the Office of Safety and Youth Development with a $187,000 salary plus health and pension benefits, now earning $25,000 more than she made prior to her arrested in 2018 for insurance fraud. City officials refused to provide a job title or description for the new position. Since the promotion, Swinton has even launched her own bold fashion brand, ObyDezign, in her spare time. The website was hastily taken down after she was contacted by The Post. All this comes, as the cash strapped city schools have been forced into laying off teachers.
Swinton joined Port Richmond as its interim principal in June 2017. She had previously served as principal at John Jay High School since 2010. In November 2017, Swinton’s insurance scam became known and seven months later she was removed by the DOE from the position. In Dec. 2018, she pleaded guilty to registering two Lexus SUVs in Pennsylvania to avoid New York’s high insurance rates. She was sentenced to three years’ probation and ordered to pay $6,200 in restitution as well as an $800 fine.
As per the Post, the Special Commissioner of Investigation for city schools also found that at John Jay, Swinton had paid a total $100,000 in split payments — which is against purchasing regulations — to Tanya John, a DOE vendor and ex-principal in the Bronx, for “Saturday retreats” and overnight college trips, investigators say. Interestingly, it was John’s Pennsylvania home which Swinton had fraudulently listed on her driver’s license and registration, as per the PA Attorney General.
Additionally, the SCI also found Swinton failed to inventory over 600 DOE computers, laptops and printers when she was employed at John Jay HS. All those devices mysteriously vanished. “Swinton’s actions show a principal’s disregard for DOE rules and procedures and demonstrate a pattern of dishonesty,” Special Commissioner Anastasia Coleman wrote in her January 2020 report to then-Chancellor Carranza, recommending her dismissal.
Parent advocates were disappointed to say the least. “Why would you continue to A) trust her and B) put her in charge of any sort of student development? Who does she know?” asked Ellen McHugh, co-president of the Citywide Council on Special Education. “All this, and they reward her? Unbelievable,” said Annette Renaud, a former PTA president at John Jay HS. “It’s corrupt.”
Chancellor David Banks did not comment.
“Oneatha Swinton is a proven school leader and has been effectively performing as a supervisor for the Office of Safety and Youth Development since the DOE appointed her to that role,” said Craig DiFolco, spokesman for the Council of School Supervisors and Administrators, a Principal’s Union which fights to save the jobs of members accused of misconduct.
