A New York City education official who also performs as a rapper is reportedly collecting a staggering $192,374 principal-level salary despite not overseeing a school, according to The New York Post.
Caleb Haraguchi-Combs, formerly an assistant principal at an East Harlem school, was selected in January to serve as project director for the proposed Next Generation Technology High School.
Caleb Haraguchi-Combs is reportedly earning nearly $200,000 a year despite not working at any New York City public school.
The 33-year-old educator received a $50,000 pay raise when he was promoted to project director of a proposed high school, a position that typically leads to becoming the school’s principal.
However, the planned Financial District school, which would have focused on artificial intelligence and computer technology, never opened.
Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels scrapped the proposal in April following criticism of its merit-based admissions policy and concerns about AI in education.
Despite the cancellation, Haraguchi-Combs reportedly continues to receive his $192,374 annual salary. Public records show he previously earned $141,960 as an assistant principal at Manhattan Center for Science and Mathematics in East Harlem.
A school official confirmed that Haraguchi-Combs no longer works there.
When approached by a New York Post reporter outside his Downtown Brooklyn apartment building, Haraguchi-Combs declined to reveal his current workplace.
“You came to my house? Outrageous,” he responded.
Haraguchi-Combs is also a hip-hop artist who has rapped about a drug deal that escalated into gunfire.
The New York City Department of Education (DOE) maintains that he is currently working on developing new school proposals and assisting with existing projects, describing such responsibilities as typical for project directors whose schools have yet to open.
However, a DOE insider disputed that explanation, arguing that administrators whose schools fail to launch are generally reassigned to assistant principal positions unless they already have tenure as principals.
“Unless a principal has tenure, they get bumped back to AP if their schools don’t open,” the source said, adding that officials should not have appointed a principal before the proposed school received approval.
Because Haraguchi-Combs never officially served as a principal, he would not have been eligible to apply for tenure in that position.
Caleb Haraguchi-Combs declined to answer questions about his current job responsibilities or where he is working.
Meanwhile, sources within the New York City Department of Education (DOE) have raised concerns about the continued use of taxpayer funds to pay his salary, questioning why he has not been reassigned to another school in need of leadership.
“What was the plan? There’s a lot of schools that could use a principal, there’s opportunities to appoint principals since then, it’s a huge waste of resources,” a DOE insider told The New York Post.
The controversy surrounding Haraguchi-Combs emerged after a group of anonymous Manhattan high school principals sent an October letter to DOE leadership calling for an investigation into Superintendent Gary Beidleman.
The letter outlined several allegations, including administrative mismanagement, the hiring of allegedly unqualified personnel, failures to meet class-size requirements, and concerns about Haraguchi-Combs’ employment status despite the cancellation of his proposed school.
Haraguchi-Combs’ employment situation was among several concerns raised in a letter criticizing the leadership of Manhattan High Schools Superintendent Gary Beidleman.
Beyond his career in education, Haraguchi-Combs performs under the stage name Cal Combs and has released two rap albums. He describes himself as “half hip-hop artist, half English teacher.”
His 2017 album Carmel, named after the Indiana city where he previously lived, includes lyrics depicting a drug deal that turns violent, with references to carrying a concealed gun and escaping gunfire.
Another track, Roundabouts, features references to cocaine use, heavy drinking and personal struggles.
Zilvinas Silenas, president of the government accountability think tank Empire Center for Public Policy, criticized Haraguchi-Combs’ nearly $200,000 annual salary, arguing that taxpayers should not be paying such substantial compensation to someone who is not performing the duties of a school principal.
“This is a new level for New York, when you are getting paid nearly $200,000 for a job you’re not doing, most taxpayers have never even dreamed of making that kind of money,” Silenas said.
According to his LinkedIn profile, Haraguchi-Combs, who adopted his wife’s surname, began his teaching career in Tokyo in 2015, working as an English teacher before moving into educational leadership.
