Disgruntled parents and local union members rallied last week outside of MS 80, the Norwood area’s largest middle school, to protest the school’s principal, Emmanuel Polanco. The protesters said Polanco is leading the school down a troubling path and violated the rights of at least one faculty member. They plan to continue rallying every week until Polanco is removed.

In his first full year at MS 80, Polanco, 30, was thrust into the spotlight after a music video on YouTube featuring his Reggaeton band, El Siki, began circulating around the school. The racy video raised eyebrows, but Cecilia Donovan, the former president of the Parents Association, said the video is masking the real problems at the school.

In addition to overcrowding problems, there have been reports of gang recruitment, students frequently cutting class and rumors of sex on school grounds. While Polanco is not solely responsible for these problems, Donovan and others say he isn’t doing enough to remedy them and is ignoring parents’ attempts to help or have any input.

Since Polanco took the helm at the end of last year, some parents have expressed major concern about the school’s future. Receiving active and consistent support from other parents, however, has proved tricky. Donovan said some parents have been left “disenfranchised,” fearing that any involvement in the effort to remove Polanco will negatively impact how their child is treated at the school.

The school has referred all questions to the DOE, which says that Polanco’s record is otherwise clean. The DOE did not respond to questions about specific criticisms of Polanco’s leadership.

The growing concerns, including a botched Parents Association vote, motivated Donovan to work with Local 372 president Santos Crespo to organize the weekly rallies. Crespo became involved in the effort to eject Polanco after learning that he violated one teacher’s Weingarten Rights, which grant employees the ability to request the presence of a union representative during investigatory interviews. Crespo claims Polanco blatantly violated this right and suspended the woman for two weeks without pay after she refused to attend a meeting without a union rep.

A spokesperson for the Special Commission on Investigations, which looks into complaints filed against the DOE or DOE employees, said they did not have any record of a complaint against Polanco.

“How can our children learn under such a hostile environment, how can the staff function,” Crespo said in a statement. “Principals are supposed to set a positive example to the school population and the community at large. Our children deserve better.”

A dozen or so union members were in attendance for the first rally. In addition to those from Local 372, members from Local 100 as well as DC 37 came out in support. Also participating was 11th District City Council candidate Cliff Stanton, who was involved in the removal of a principal at PS 24, where he was the Parents Association president, four years ago.

“It’s a horrible feeling sending your kids to a school where the principal is clearly in over his head,” Stanton said.

The protesters marched in circles, shouting “Remove the principal!” and “Hey hey, ho ho, El Siki must go!”
Attendance is expected to grow in the coming weeks, as organizers said the rallies will continue to be held every Thursday afternoon outside of MS 80.