District 86 Removes Principal From Duties

JOLIET, IL — The administration of Joliet District 86 Superintendent Theresa Rouse removed Carol Paul from her responsibilities as building principal at Taft Elementary School this week, school officials confirmed. Paul was finishing her second school year as Taft principal.

On Thursday night, District 86 spokeswoman Sandra Zalewski told Patch that Paul is currently on paid leave from her position, and she is the subject of an ongoing investigation. Zalewski was tight-lipped about the nature of the investigation.

Paul, according to her LinkedIn profile, has been employed with District 86 for nearly 20 years. She obtained her bachelor's degree from the University of St. Francis in Joliet and joined District 86 in August 2002.

She taught for five years at Washington Junior High School, served as a resource specialist for one year, and then became Washington's assistant principal for three years. Before she went to Taft in 2018, Paul had been principal for seven years at Woodland Elementary School.

In December, Joliet Patch produced a public spending watchdog story on District 86 officials. At the time, Paul was the 22nd highest paid District 86 employee, making $110,816 a year.

In Paul's absence, the District 86 administration has moved Shavon Pittman from being assistant principal at Hufford Junior High School to serve as interim building administrator at Taft.

The west side grade school on Oregon Avenue has about 380 students, kindergarten through fifth grade.

Zalewski told Patch that she could not offer a time frame on how long the investigation of Paul will last.

Paul becomes the first building principal during the 2019-20 school year to be removed from her day-to-day duties, District 86 officials confirmed to Patch.

Zalewski said the switch in administrators with three months to go during the current school year should not pose a major disruption for Taft's teachers, students and support staff.

"Mrs. Pittman is a seasoned veteran," she said. "She'll serve as the administrator until further notice."