HPS superintendent extends her leave

HPS Superintendent Jaleelah Ahmed

By Charles Sercombe
As a number of people in the Hamtramck Public School District predicted, Superintendent Jaleelah Ahmed did not return to the job on Monday.
Instead, the district announced that Ahmed was extending her paid medical leave. The district did not say how long this extension will last.
Ahmed took a medical leave over a month ago, but she did not cite specifics — unlike she did two years ago, when she took a leave for over three months because of exhaustion from dealing with the Covid pandemic crisis.
Ahmed’s second leave began back in early February, shortly after she received a poor job evaluation from the school board. The board said she had been “minimally effective,” which is one step above the lowest possible rating of “ineffective.”
That review resulted in Ahmed not qualifying for an $11,700 bonus. Ahmed’s current salary is $195,000, plus an additional $24,000 for overseeing the recreation department.
Ahmed has a pending lawsuit filed in federal court against the district.
Ahmed did not respond to an email from The Review for a comment about her job performance evaluation.
That evaluation came after the school board met for three hours in a closed session to discuss her yearly job performance. According to sources, it was a heated meeting.
News of Ahmed’s extended leave drew criticism on social media.
On the Facebook page called “I love Hamtramck and actually live here,” Michelle Wagenaar-Mohamed said “Does this surprise you? This has to change, this CANNOT continue. Our kids are losing out!!”
Wagenaar-Mohamed added: “This is unreal! And nobody on the school board sees a problem with this? Or, they got their raise so that’s all that matters?”
Earlier this year, the board gave itself a raise that amounted to over 700 percent of their former yearly stipend.
Diana Elizabeth added that Ahmed “is a poor representation of our school district. I’m sure other school districts are laughing at us. Especially our school board.”

The district said that it will continue to have retired educator Dr. Michael Williamson act as interim superintendent.
Posted March 15, 2024