‘Toxic’ climate at Frankford High prompts a Philadelphia School District probe

Allegations of a “toxic” atmosphere at Frankford High have prompted a formal audit of the school’s climate, The Inquirer has learned.

Philadelphia School District officials are probing how conditions inside the grand 116-year-old Oxford Avenue building known as the “Home of Champions” have become so charged.

The investigation comes after the district overturned the principal’s order to cut the jobs of several teachers out of seniority order — because, district officials and the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers say, the teachers spoke out about the longtime school leader.

» READ MORE: Teachers at Frankford High say they’re facing retaliation after speaking out against the principal

And it comes as staff have reported specific, serious allegations about the principal, Michael Calderone, according to statements made to the teachers’ union and district and obtained by The Inquirer.

The statements include contentions that Calderone struck a student after the student assaulted multiple Frankford staffers.

While that incident was the only account of violence, others said the principal screamed at them, and made improper requests, including asking them to provide grades for students in classes they did not teach. Others said he spoke openly about intentions to get rid of staff members who were not allies, to force out staff who he believed were opposed to him.

Calderone has served as Frankford’s principal for more than a decade and has been recognized as a fellow with the Philadelphia Academy of School Leaders, which selects promising district leaders and equips them with management training. But staffers, in written statements shared with the PFT and other accounts, describe a mercurial leader who routinely raises his voice to them and their students, and who has forced out capable administrators and educators.

Calderone declined to answer questions and referred a reporter to the district.

Monique Braxton, spokesperson for the school system, said its “leaders continue to engage with the Frankford High School community. We do not comment on personnel matters.”

School system and PFT officials completed interviews of most Frankford staff in late May, according to the school district and the union. Administration interviews are still pending.

Some staff were so worried about the principal knowing they were speaking about him that they requested teleconference interviews so neither Calderone nor his supporters would witness them walking into rooms to speak with investigators, according to multiple people with firsthand knowledge of the investigation.

Arthur Steinberg, PFT president, said that even if a fraction of the reports made to the union over the past two years about Calderone are true, “that he’s not fit to run that school, or any school at all.”

Steinberg confirmed that many of the initial transfers Calderone ordered as a result of district budget cuts were reversed.

“The transfers that were improper were rescinded,” he said.

In interviews and written statements, a number of staff described a Frankford climate that is “toxic” and a principal who is quick to fly off the handle, both with students and with staff.

Two staffers described a situation last school year where, they said, Calderone punched a student who had assaulted other Frankford staff.

School staff had subdued the student, according to two people present, and were awaiting Philadelphia police, but Calderone came into the room where the student, now quiet and handcuffed, was being held.

“Dr. Calderone grabs the kid by the hair and then started uppercutting the kid with his other hand,” the first staffer wrote. Those in the room urged Calderone to stop, according to the accounts. The Inquirer is withholding the names of the staffers because they feared reprisal.

The second staffer said he knew Calderone was wrong to punch a student, but “I didn’t want to speak up, because I was scared I would lose my job if I did.”

It’s not clear if those allegations were ever disclosed to district officials before the current climate audit. All school staff are legally obligated to report child abuse.

“There were multiple times throughout the years I worked with Dr. Calderone that I witnessed him screaming at students and/or staff,” a third staffer said in a statement shared with the PFT. “It was a common occurrence to hear him screaming at students in the hallways.”

A fourth staffer said Calderone has directed them to pass students who didn’t show up to class.

“Many teachers, myself included, have been forced to change grades for students who have not earned a passing grades,” the staffer wrote in their statement. That staffer said Calderone’s administration has at times created “ghost” classes — rostered classes, presumably to ensure students meet graduation requirements, that are not actually taught, but for which students receive grades.

“I was written up twice without cause,” a fifth staffer wrote in a statement.

It’s not clear when the audit might conclude, or what might come of it.

Other staffers interviewed by The Inquirer confirmed the tension and toxicity at Frankford, but say that those who are firmly anti-Calderone contribute to the negativity at the school.

“Those against him tend to hold grudges, making it either you must dislike him, or if you are OK with him then you’re labeled as if you’re in his pocket — but in reality you are just doing a job, and he’s just a boss,” a sixth staffer said.

A seventh staffer said that it’s tough to get things done at Frankford because of the polarized atmosphere.

“The climate now is not good, and ultimately the school leader sets the tone, but I think people are very quick to blame all the problems at the school on the principal,” the seventh staffer said. “There are some folks who will fight everything the principal says or asks of us, even if it’s reasonable, just because there’s a personality clash.”

An eighth staffer said they believed Calderone “wants to improve things for kids,” but “the execution isn’t always amazing. Half the time, he can’t get things done, because the teachers are actively fighting him. Is he hotheaded and has an issue with communication? Yes, sometimes.”

Tensions between Calderone and those opposed to him have been apparent for years, a ninth staffer said, but they have ratcheted up in recent years.

The ninth staffer said Calderone does not hide his emotions, and has yelled, sometimes at students, but not in a threatening way.

An exception came last year, according to multiple staffers, when Calderone walked into an after-school meeting of Frankford staff who are members of the PFT.

Calderone stormed into the meeting — where non-PFT members were not permitted — was furious with actions the union was trying to take, and told those present to tell Steinberg to “come here” and confront Calderone. His language sounded like he was threatening a fight, according to several people.

But, the ninth staffer said, they have also been supported by Calderone, and found him to be good for the school.

“I don’t see the things I have heard about him,” the ninth staffer said. “I just show up and do my job.”