BRONZEVILLE — Chicago Public Schools confirmed Wednesday that former Earle STEM Elementary School Principal Ketesha Melendez is the new acting principal at Crispus Attucks Elementary, replacing Jacqueline Davis.
"Mrs. Melendez is the new acting principal at Crispus Attucks until the principal there returns from leave, which at this time I do not know when that will be," said Joel Hood, a CPS spokesman. "But upon the principal returning Mrs. Melendez would be reassigned elsewhere."
CPS officials could not confirm how long Davis has been on leave.
DNAinfo Chicago reported Melendez's new position earlier in the week, but CPS would not immediately confirm the posting at the time.
Melendez had been principal of Earle STEM, 2040 W. 62nd St., since 2011 but was abruptly removed last month.
“After carefully evaluating community input, CPS decided a change in leadership at Earle Elementary School is in the best interests of the students, parents and teachers," Hood said.
Ald. Toni Foulkes (15th), whose ward includes Earle STEM, said she was disappointed to see Melendez removed.
“CPS did our babies a disservice when they removed her,” Foulkes said. “Parents should be pissed off at this decision. She had Earle well on its way to recovery.”
CPS data show that Attucks, 5055 S. State St., has 169 students compared to 538 at Earle.
Melendez was unavailable for comment.
