Embattled DeKalb Schools HR chief has new job

Leo Brown has not been seen at work since December.

Leo Brown, the human resources head at DeKalb County Schools who hasn’t been seen at work since December, has a new job, according to a blog post by a member of the district’s school board.

“Effective Monday, February 27, 2017, Dr. Leo Brown who served as Chief Human Capital Management Officer since Jan. 2016, will serve in the capacity of Specialist II Compliance in the Facilities and Operations Division of the DeKalb County School District,” Stan Jester wrote in the comments section of his DeKalb Schools Fact Checker blog.

Everett Patrick, the director of employment services, will become the interim chief human capital management officer until the district finds a permanent replacement, Jester’s note said.

It’s unknown whether the demotion is related to job performance. District officials did not respond to emails seeking comment or confirmation.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported last week about Brown’s mysterious absence. The district later issued a one-sentence statement, only confirming Brown’s continued employment there.

The school district has not said where Brown has been since December, or whether he has completed any work. A request for Brown’s emails since December has gone unanswered nearly two weeks. He came to the district in January 2016 as the interim human resources manager, but was given the permanent position in March after it was renamed “chief human capital management officer.” Brown was one of three interim administrators hired who previously worked with Superintendent Steve Green at Kansas City Public Schools, who later received permanent positions.

Also unknown is whether Brown will physically report to work in the school district office in the new position or whether it will affect his current $175,000 annual salary.

Brown came to the district from Emory University Hospital. Before that, he had been Kansas City Public Schools’ chief human capital management officer.

When Brown was officially hired, Green said he had faith in Brown’s leadership to help steer teacher recruitment and retention efforts in the right direction.

Brown has said he’s dispatched employees to job fairs and used partnerships with colleges to seek teachers for hard-to-fill positions. But the district has hired about 70 uncertified teachers since being awarded Strategic Waiver School System status, which allows flexibility from some state rules while holding districts to more strict standards. The district, however, has more vacancies (58.5) than it did this time last year (53.5), without employing uncertified teachers.

In Green’s first year as superintendent, more than 900 teachers left DeKalb County School District.

Board members have addressed ongoing recruitment woes and morale problems with increased frequency in recent months, questioning Brown about the continuing trend of job openings and what’s being done to step up recruiting efforts. Brown didn’t arrive at the school district with the best of fanfare. A search firm was tasked with finding candidates for several jobs and paid more than $100,000 to do so. But the jobs went to candidates selected by Green and suggested by others at the school district. Green defended the decisions at the time, saying the search firm’s job included figuring out who among all the candidates would best serve the district’s needs.

Brown lasted less than a year.