Principal Demoted Over Racial Slur

Brennan-Rogers Magnet School’s principal has been demoted to assistant principal, at a school to be determined, after she used the ​“n‑word” during hypothethical statements at an anti-racism workshop. Dissenting board members argued a private apology and demotion were not enough to repair the harm done.

Larry Conaway also voted against the demotion but did not explain his vote.

“This really got emotional for me. We seem to be very forgiving without being asked for forgiveness. They asked us to keep the discussion quiet and behind scenes and not to have their name dragged through the mud. That’s the request from the perpetrator, not the victims,” said Darnell Goldson.

Goldson explained why Roblee using the n‑word was so significant. He described experiences from the late 1960s onward that cemented what the slur means to him.

“I’ve been called the n‑word. I was chased off a bus in Boston when I mistakenly went through south Boston, not knowing I went to the ​‘wrong’ side of town. I’ve been the direct victim of this kind of stuff. This is not a slip of the tongue,” Goldson said.

Roblee’s transfer will start on July 1. She will make $137,099, based on her 20 years of experience. (She has asked to have her privacy respected and not to be contacted when asked for comment on this matter.)

“To Err Is Human”

Roblee (pictured in above video) was first placed on leave in late March pending an investigation into her alleged use of a racial slur.

Monday’s meeting provided context for what happened. Roblee was in an antiracism training and reacted to the workshop moderator using the phrases ​“white people” and ​“white privilege” by using the full n‑word in hypothetical conversations.

“She was apparently talking to some teachers and said, ​‘What if I started saying [n‑word] this, [n‑word] that?’” Goldson explained.

Roblee’s subordinates felt uncomfortable and reported the situation. The district’s human resources department conducted an investigation, with help from lawyers, and found truth in what the teachers and assistant principal reported.

Superintendent Iline Tracey explained this context to the Board of Education for the first time behind closed doors in a two-hour-long executive session on Monday evening. Multiple board members, including Goldson, relayed some of the details in the public portion of the meeting and confirmed more in interviews afterwards.

Board President Yesenia Rivera, member Matthew Wilcox, member Edward Joyner and Mayor Justin Elicker voted for the demotion. Joyner vouched for Roblee’s good deeds over the course of her career and could personally attest to her ​“exemplary” work when she was a teacher.

“If anyone examines that person’s record in this district and takes a deep look at what was allegedly done, they would conclude this does not rise to level of the seriousness of other things that have been done by other people in other places,” Joyner said. ​“I think someone’s concrete acts are more of an indicator of who they are than instances in which they have said the wrong things.”

Tracey argued for her recommendation to demote rather than fire Roblee. She quoted the 16th Century poet Alexander Pope that ​“to err is human, to forgive divine.”

“I don’t think it is in the best interest of any of us to destroy a person’s life over a slip of the tongue or something said in private to someone else,” Tracey said. ​“People are treating me as if I’m not a Black superintendent. Don’t you believe I also have feelings when people say something about Black people?”

“Hush Hush” Blasted

Jackson-McArthur and Goldson focused not on Roblee herself but how quietly the investigation happened. Jackson-McArthur emphasized that she does not know Roblee.

“I don’t agree with keeping this hush hush. Black people have been conditioned to take things and say, ​‘Oh it’s OK. That person didn’t mean it.’ Anybody leading a school is old enough to understand what they are saying,” Jackson-McArthur said.

Goldson emphasized that Roblee was speaking to subordinates and that Black people will continue to have to report to Roblee in her new position. They will have to wonder whether this reaction to an antiracism workshop extends to Roblee’s evaluation of their work performance.

Both board members said they might have voted for the demotion after a more extensive public process of reckoning and learning.

“I believe in restoration, second chances and forgiveness. I’m a Catholic. But I haven’t heard or seen any mea culpa — any admission of guilt or request for forgiveness. This is not just about the two or three people the slur was made to. It’s about all of the parents and students in school affected by that language and the employees in the district affected by the slur,” Goldson said.

Goldson and Jackson-McArthur’s focus on transparency echoed calls from Greater New Haven Clergy Association and West Rock Alder Honda Smith earlier on Monday. The Clergy Association held a press conference in the morning to request details of the investigation into Roblee and to call for her to be fired if she did use a racial slur.

Alder Honda Smith reserved judgement on Roblee’s actions until she has more facts. She wants to see the full investigation, including any potential recordings of the incident.

“The Board of Education should have at least given me some forms of heads up, so I know how to address questions,” Smith said. ​“I just want to see the reports to see if it’s factual or not. You have reports posted for everything else.”

Last year, Chief Financial Officer Phil Penn alleged that Board of Education member Darnell Goldson was creating a hostile work environment. The complaint turned into a ten month-long, half-public saga as Goldson requested transparency into what he viewed as an attempt to silence him.

Investigations into three security guards have also become public knowledge after the New Haven Independent requested the documents in a Freedom of Information Act request. The reports found that the guards had lied on their timesheets, requesting pay for hours they did not work, among other erratic behaviors. These findings resulted in two being fired and one resigning.

Smith had a great first impression of Roblee, she said. That doesn’t change how serious the offense is.

“To even allow those words to come out of your mouth, even joking or whatever, is unacceptable. If that is indeed what was said, she needs to be fired. She doesn’t need to be in this community at all as a school leader or assistant leader,” Smith said. ​“If she didn’t, people need to rally around her and show her love.”

If Roblee did say the slur, she could gain forgiveness for these actions by apologizing to those present and to the community. Even after that stage of forgiving her though, Smith could not imagine wanting her to return to New Haven schools. Already, parents have called Smith upset about the situation.

“If your child went to a school where the administrators utilized that language, would you like that? No. That’s how I feel,” Smith said.