Grand Prairie ISD parents call for transparency in superintendent investigation
GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas - Concerned parents in Grand Prairie are calling for transparency after the district’s superintendent was placed on leave. He’s under investigation, but only trustees know why.
There are still a lot of questions as to why newly hired Grand Prairie ISD Superintendent Jorge Arredondo is not on the job.
Last week, the school board announced it had hired a third-party law firm to investigate Arredondo. He was placed on administrative leave "in order to protect the district and Dr. Arredondo."
Now, trustees are getting pushback from some community members who want to know what’s going on.
On Thursday night, there was a protest outside Grand Prairie ISD headquarters supporting Arredondo.
The topic also came up during the public comment portion of Thursday’s school board meeting. Most wanted more information about the probe that’s underway.
"I’m kind of confused. You all unanimously hired him. And now you’ve suspended him. So I guess a little more transparency would be appreciated," said Alfred Adelcastillo, a Grand Prairie parent.
"It is public record that GPISD has 13 or more failing schools in our district. We, the parents, have every right to know what this pending investigation entails. What could be so wrong that the board finds so hard to disclose," said Theresa Vargas Robles, another parent.
Grand Prairie ISD superintendent placed on administrative leave after 3 months on the job
In a statement, the district says the decision was made "in order to protect the district and Dr. Arredondo."
The school board took no action on the matter during Thursday’s meeting.
It has not given a timeline for when the investigation might be complete.
There’s been no mention of any criminal wrongdoing.