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Last month, Lavert Robertson, a former principal at Portland Public Schools, became the new CEO of All Hands Raised, a nonprofit that works with local school districts on issues of equity.
The announcement of the appointment of the 43-year-old Robertson was unwelcome news to some who observed his treatment of students at the two schools he oversaw.
This past week, WW interviewed six people—three on the record—who allege Robertson harassed and mistreated Latinx students and staff while he was principal at Cesar Chavez School and later George Middle School. At Cesar Chavez, parents complained in 2015 that Robertson had children perform janitorial duties as punishment for misbehavior.
Parents and staff tell WW they repeatedly brought complaints to the school district about unequal treatment from Robertson, but didn't approach All Hands Raised because they felt they'd already been ignored.
"What he did to our families at Cesar Chavez, it's very hurtful," says Marta Guembes, a longtime education advocate for Latinx students. "He never apologized for it, never did any healing in our community or reach our community."
She says the All Hands Raised board "didn't do their homework."
The allegations place All Hands Raised in a tricky position.
Robertson is black. His critics are Latinx, the largest minority group in local schools. That creates a volatile situation at a nonprofit whose sole focus is to ensure equity for all students.
All Hands Raised directed questions to Trever Cartwright, a Portland business consultant who was board chair when it selected Robertson. He says the nonprofit was aware of the allegation Robertson had children perform janitorial work, but did not know Latinx people felt unequally treated. He says All Hands Raised stands by its decision.
"It gives me pause because there's concern, [but] it does not give me pause that Lavert Robertson is the right CEO for our organization," says Cartwright.
During the hiring process, he adds, Robertson received "glowing recommendations" from the school district.
Robertson denies all allegations he mistreated Latinx students or staff. "This is the first time that I've heard about these opinions," he tells WW, "and I'm sorry to hear about them."
All Hands Raised was founded as the Portland Public Schools Foundation in 1996. For most of its existence, one of its primary roles was to coordinate spending by various individual schools' foundations. However, in May, the organization, which had a budget of roughly $2 million last year, shifted its focus entirely to advancing school equity. Nonprofit spokeswoman Jeanie-Marie Price says this means All Hands Raised's renewed focus is to improve results for impoverished kids and students of color.
Robertson's hire in June appeared to make sense. He was an experienced principal who could point to statistical improvements at both schools he administered. During his time at George Middle School, for instance, the school's discipline referrals decreased by 57 percent.
But in 2013, a group of Latinx parents documented their complaints about Robertson in a letter presented to district leaders.
The document said Latinx parents were "treated with contempt," and asked, "When is it and how do we have to present our concerns so that they pay attention to us?"
A meeting with senior district administration led to no changes.
Five Latinx families told WW in 2015 their children were ordered to clean restrooms, wipe off desks and pick up trash ("Little Janitors," WW, March 10, 2015). Robertson left shortly thereafter and became principal at George Middle School.
In 2016, an employee at George presented a written complaint to then-Portland School Board member Paul Anthony about Robertson's leadership at George.
The document, which WW has reviewed, alleges Robertson gave harsher behavioral punishments to Latinx students than to other students. It says Robertson would often yell at and threaten to suspend Latinx kids when they misbehaved, and routinely denied funding for Latinx family and student events. (Anthony tells WW he "vaguely" remembers the employee's letter.)
Four former staff members at George and Cesar Chavez described similar incidents but declined to speak on the record, fearing retribution from the school district.
One former staff member who worked closely with Robertson spoke on condition of anonymity. She says he yelled at Latinx staff members and disparaged the English-speaking skills of a teacher, causing her to cry.
Robertson denies he ever mistreated Latinx staff and students. "Absolutely not," he says.
Robertson tells WW the the only complaints he ever heard regarding his leadership, came in 2015 after the janitorial discipline controversy at Cesar Chavez. (It is not clear why he doesn't consider that an allegation of bias, since all of the families who complained were Latinx.)
All Hands Raised says it was only aware of that complaint, and no larger pattern of allegations, during the hiring process.
Three former employees who worked under Robertson, two of them Latinx, say he was a fair and kind boss.
"He's one of the fairest people I know," says Elinna Goetz, who was Robertson's secretary at both George and Cesar Chavez.
Cartwright, former chair of the board at All Hands Raised, says the nonprofit is listening to critics of its decision. "Their opinion matters to us," he says. "Their concerns are important." He asked the Latinx community "to be willing to understand that Lavert is making every effort…to reach out to all of our key constituencies."
One parent remains unconvinced.
Fernando Aguilar says his son still remembers having to pick up garbage and clean the gym at Cesar Chavez in 2015, and pleading with his parents to let him transfer to another school. He was 10 years old at the time.
"It's something very sad and emotional for us," Aguilar says. "He still remembers everything that happened."