Alberto Carvalho has finally resigned as superintendent of the LA Unified School District (LAUSD), months after an FBI raid of his office and his homes in LA and Miami in February.

The resignation was long overdue.

The raid is thought to have to do with a $6 million contract that LAUSD had with a company called AllHere, which was supposed to have created an AI chatbot named “Ed.” That never happened, but the founder of AllHere was charged with fraud. 

Carvalho has not been charged with anything, and he maintains his innocence. Still, his refusal to resign until now had a serious impact on the school district.

Some of the damage was financial. Carvalho had continued to collect his $440,000-per-year salary while on administrative leave — even as LAUSD was also paying acting superintendent Andres Chait nearly $400,000 per year. 

The even bigger cost may be the 14% pay raise that LAUSD agreed to give teachers, under threat of a strike in the middle of the school year. Had Carvalho stepped aside, the LAUSD might have bought itself time to negotiate over the summer — or it could have found a strong replacement.

Whatever his fate in legal proceedings, Carvalho leaves behind a legacy that is mixed, at best. On the one hand, test scores had risen during his tenure, which began in 2021.

On the other, LAUSD continued to suffer from chronic absenteeism and plunging enrollment. The district has lost 4.5% of its students since last year alone.

LAUSD needs a strong new superintendent — one who will stand up to the unions and fight for what is best for the children.

This year’s candidates for LAUSD board must face the question of how they would fill Carvalho’s role. It has suddenly become the most pressing issue in the school board race.

Joel Pollak is Opinion editor of the California Post.

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