South Cook News

A new assistant principal has been appointed at Century Junior High in Orland Park, Illinois. The school board unanimously voted to hire Tremaine Harris, a 26-year-old educator, for the position with a salary of $90,000. Harris's appointment has sparked controversy due to his age and social media activity.

Harris is relatively young for the role, as "the average age of middle school assistant principals at the time of hiring typically falls in the range of 32-42 years old," according to ChatGPT. Despite having only four years of teaching experience, he was chosen for this administrative position.

Concerns have been raised about Harris's past social media posts. A photo from 2023 shows him posing in women's clothing with a caption that some find inappropriate. Critics argue that such behavior makes him an unsuitable role model for students.

Harris has since removed his social media presence and deactivated his LinkedIn account. This move has led to questions about transparency in the hiring process. OPen Record highlighted that "a public school leadership appointment should be based on clear qualifications and a transparent process — not silence, confusion, and post-hoc discovery."

There are also questions regarding Harris's qualifications. The job posting required "at least 5 years successful teaching experience," but Harris graduated from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in 2021 and has taught math for two years at Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Academy of Social Justice while pursuing a master's degree in educational leadership.

During his graduation speech, Harris expressed ambitions to become the U.S. Secretary of Education one day. This ambition has drawn further scrutiny from those questioning his suitability for his current role.

The school board members involved in Harris's hiring decision include Nichole Browner, Alan Kastengren, Patti Thanos, Kelly Chmielewski, Ray Morandi, Linda Peckham-Dodge, and Aisha Zayyad. It remains unclear whether they were aware of Harris's social media history during the vetting process.

Some community members are calling for changes within the school board and expressing concerns about future appointments within District 135.

Information from this article can be found here.