Local News in Brief : Principal Gets Demoted
The principal of Centennial High School in Compton, accused of misconduct and negligence apparently in connection with a football scandal, has been demoted to an elementary school teaching position.
The Board of Trustees of Compton Unified School District voted to demote the principal, Henry Jefferson, and to fire Ira Harper, Centennial’s public safety officer.
In May, Jefferson and Harper were abruptly suspended, along with Centennial football Coach Tony Cruz, whom the board subsequently fired June 14.
Exact charges against the three men have never been revealed, and School Supt. Ted Kimbrough refused again last week to discuss the allegations.
But school sources said Cruz took football players on trips without getting school board authorization and also spent thousands of dollars without prior authorization.
After Cruz was fired, a school official said that Jefferson had given the coach “carte blanche” at the school.
The board resolution demoting Jefferson said that Kimbrough recommended the action based on Jefferson’s “material breach of . . . job responsibilities.”
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