Elgin’s school district removed two educators from their positions this week, placing them on administrative leave while an internal review is being conducted in wake of an NBC 5 Investigates report.
The two educators – assistant principal Charles Smith and music teacher Hans Krueger – had previously resigned from Chicago Public Schools’ Little Village Lawndale High School years ago and were placed on a temporary “Do Not Hire” list while a CPS investigation looks into allegations of misconduct.
The pending investigation, still being conducted by the CPS Office of Inspector General and its Sexual Allegations Unit, is looking into misconduct allegations involving several educators at Little Village Lawndale High School.
It is still pending more than three years after it began, meaning there’s been no finding of wrongdoing.
Our own investigation, based on district records and interviews, uncovered that Elgin schools hired Smith and Krueger not knowing they had been accused of misconduct years earlier or were placed on a temporary Do Not Hire list, referred to by Chicago Public Schools as a “DPI,” while the allegations against them and other educators were still ongoing.
District records show the OIG has substantiated sexual misconduct cases against other educators tied to Little Village High School, including former Social Justice High School Dean Brian Crowder, and two other teachers, Jesus Sanchez and Michael Abeja.
Since 2017, district records show at least seven teachers or administrators have resigned or been fired from Little Village Lawndale High School amid allegations of serious misconduct.
As part of our reporting, we interviewed a dozen former students who said they felt like they were groomed into sexual relationships with teachers or administrators at the school.
Most of the sexual encounters, the women allege, happened shortly after they turned 18 or were recent graduates. At least two former students we interviewed allege they had sexual encounters with educators while still in high school.
A student who asked by referred to as “Gabby” alleges that she had a sexual relationship with her art teacher, Danny Pena, while still attending Infinity High School, one of four smaller schools that make up the Little Village Lawndale High School campus. Pena resigned from his position in August of 2017. The next month, he was placed on a permanent Do Not Hire list, barring him from working for Chicago Public Schools ever again. His disciplinary and personnel files do not say why. NBC 5 Investigates found he moved out of state. He has not responded to calls or emails seeking comment.
NBC 5 Investigates May 19Lessons in Betrayal: Former Chicago Public Schools students say they were groomed by teachers
NBC 5 Investigates May 20Former CPS investigator says grooming allegations should have been prioritized
“Gabby” also alleged that Hans Krueger sent her inappropriate text messages and took her to a concert.
District records show Krueger left Chicago Public Schools on his own in 2017. He was later hired by Elgin in 2020 and was not placed on the temporary Do Not Hire list until 2022. A letter in his personnel file shows it was due to “allegations of serious misconduct.”
He has not responded to repeated calls and emails seeking comment.
Another former student, who asked to be called “Michelle” alleges that Charles Smith leered at her and other students throughout high school and that the two had sex weeks after she graduated.
An internal investigative document obtained by NBC 5 Investigates shows Smith and “Michelle” began texting days after she graduated and on July 1, 2019, and exchanged more than 60 text messages.
Smith’s attorney, Stephanie Nathanson, has previously said her client “vehemently denies any allegations” and that he has cooperated with the inspector general’s investigation and “will be cleared of wrongdoing.”
NBC 5 Investigates reached out again Wednesday afternoon to Nathanson after Elgin schools notified us that it had removed Smith and Krueger.
In an emailed response that criticized our reporting, she said in part that “… (Smith) was placed on a temporary leave pending the outcome of the OIG’s investigation. There is no new investigation of or allegations against Mr. Smith…”
A spokeswoman for Elgin schools notified NBC 5 Investigates Wednesday and offered a statement that read in part:
“…We care very deeply for our students and our fundamental commitment is to their well-being… so we have taken immediate action. The individuals identified in your report as being employed by our school district are on leave pending an internal review, which has included outreach to Chicago Public Schools and state and law enforcement authorities …”
All of the former students we interviewed expressed concerns with the length of the investigation.
In a new statement issued Wednesday, Inspector General Phil Wagenknecht responded to our reporting saying:
“The CPS OIG prioritized this case and poured resources into it, both before and after Ms. Brown’s departure from this office. The team that worked on this investigation devoted countless hours to a case that evolved and grew over time. This will be clear from our forthcoming report.”
The statement is referring to Stephanie Brown, a former investigator within the Sexual Allegations Unit, who says she was fired while working on the investigation.
She told NBC 5 Investigates she had conducted 50 interviews and submitted 192 reports before she was let go for unsatisfactory performance, despite having mostly satisfactory or exemplary marks on her job review the year prior, copies of her records she shared with us show.
In her interview with NBC 5 Investigates, she expressed concerns that the investigation has dragged on and worried it wouldn’t be finished.
NBC 5 Investigates speaks with professor who’s studied teacher misconduct
NBC 5 Investigates shared our findings with Dr. Charol Shakeshaft, the author of “Organizational Betrayal” and a professor of educational leadership at Virginia Commonwealth University who has studied teacher misconduct for years.
Shakeshaft said while problems are widespread, there are some districts proposing solutions.
“The other trend that’s happening across the country is that school districts are saying you cannot have an intimate sexual relationship with a graduate for X number of years. Some are five years, some are two years. But schools are starting to pass policies that really do – are directed at this practice. That’s how widespread it is,” Shakeshaft said.
In Illinois, teachers can lose their jobs for having sex with their students. But it is not a crime if the students are 18 and consent.
Chicago Public Schools’ policy states that “with respect to conduct between [employees] and students, any sexual or romantic conduct constitutes sexual misconduct.” It does not appear to define relationships with graduates.
“And I think that we just need more balance in the state of Illinois – to build in more protections for our kids,” said Tania Haigh with the child advocate group Kids Too.
A bill proposed in the legislature would make it a crime for a teacher to have sex with a student between ages of 18 to 23. It has not gained much traction within the legislature.
Dr. Shakeshaft said there is plenty that districts can do without changing the criminal code.
Her research, she said, found that there are likely more instances of misconduct that occur than there are investigations.
Schools, she said, could do a better job educating students on boundaries and that it is everyone’s responsibility to say something, if they see something.
“For middle school and high school kids, we don’t really say much about what’s appropriate for a teacher. What’s an appropriate behavior for a teacher? We don’t teach them to say, if you see your friend is being groomed or being touched or being wooed by a teacher, you report it. That’s your job. That’s the job of the kid. It’s the job of the adults,” she said.
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