When it comes to Hamtramck politics, News Hits foolishly thought it had seen it all. But then we learned that the Hamtramck School Board rehired Paul Stamatakis as the district’s superintendent.
The board fired Stamtakis earlier this year for allegedly spending $1 million on building improvements without the board’s approval, according to city records.
But the seven-member board that voted to fire Stamatakis is not the same board that rehired him last month. Three of the four who voted to can Stamatakis were removed from office as a result of a recall effort this past summer.
Camille Colatosti, who was the Hamtramck Board president before she was recalled, fired Stamatakis after former Assistant Wayne County Prosecutor George Ward issued a report accusing Stamatakis of spending money without board approval. Despite the report, the new board rehired him.
But that’s not all, folks. Stamatakis, who was the superintendent of Warren Consolidated Schools before coming to Hamtramck, is being sued for allegedly failing to protect three 8-year old girls from a gym teacher who molested them. Metro Times published a cover story about the case last month (“Lessons in Denial” Sept. 15).
The lawsuit alleges that Stamatakis ignored repeated warnings about the gym teacher’s misconduct and allowed his transfer from a middle school to the elementary school where the girls were molested. Stamtakis felt the transfer was appropriate since the gym teacher would be away from older, more developed girls, according to his deposition testimony.
Now, does that sound like the kind of person who should be in charge of a school district? Apparently, the new Hamtramck school board thinks so.
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