Los Angeles school district puts superintendent on paid leave

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(The Center Square) – Alberto Carvalho, the Los Angeles Unified School District superintendent, was placed on paid administrative leave by the Board of Education late Friday afternoon pending an FBI investigation.

Carvalho's home in the coastal San Pedro neighborhood of Los Angeles was searched Wednesday by FBI agents who arrived with a warrant and left carrying boxes. Media reports have said the investigation may be linked to possible kickbacks when Carvalho was superintendent of Miami-Dade County schools. Other news reports say the search was tied to AllHere, an artificial intelligence company that the LAUSD hired in 2024 for a $6 million chatbot that was never created.

Carvalho has not been charged with any crime and has not commented on the search. The U.S. Attorney's Office and the FBI's Los Angeles Office told The Center Square they could not comment and that the search warrant affidavit was under seal.

The Board of Education of the nation's second-largest school district voted 7-0 in favor of putting Carvalho on leave during a closed session that lasted more than three hours on Friday. The decision was announced during an open session that was just a few minutes.

Andres Chait, who has served as the district’s chief of school operations, will begin work immediately as acting superintendent, the board announced.

Board President Scott Schmerelson said employees will take their directions from Chait.

“The board believes in you, supports you, knows you will always continue to do your very best,” Schemerelson said, addressing district staff during the open session.

The school board's closed session on Thursday about Carvalho followed a five-minute public comment period during which three people called on the district to show greater transparency and accountability. They also asked board members to consider matters such as special needs students as they discuss the district's leadership.