Report: 'Principal' Rapper Paid $192K to Lead Nonexistent NYC School
An NYC educator was paid over $192,000 to lead a high school that never opened, while serving as a project director rather than a principal. The Next Generation Technology High School proposal was cut in April amid backlash over its merit-based admissions model and fears about AI in schools, against a backdrop of new rules banning generative AI tools for younger students. The DOE maintains the individual is developing new proposals, but officials acknowledge principals should not be named before a school opens. The case intersects with the educator’s side career as a rapper and broader concerns about school governance and student outcomes. Looking ahead, scrutiny is likely to sharpen around startup schools and accountability for non-operational positions.
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Caleb Haraguchi-Combs, 33, a rapper and former vice principal at another NYC school, was picked to be the project director for Next Generation Technology High School, typically a principal's role.
The proposal for the new campus was ultimately canceled by Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels in April, cutting the route for a school focusing on artificial intelligence and computer technology.
The decision was attributed to resistance over the program's merit-based admissions and broader concerns about integrating AI into K-12 education.
In September, NYC education officials announced a policy banning generative AI tools for students from early childhood through eighth grade, complicating any AI-centered school plans.
Haraguchi-Combs no longer holds the prior role of assistant principal at the Manhattan Center for Science and Mathematics, where pay exceeded $140,000 annually.
DOE sources claim Haraguchi-Combs is still involved in developing proposals, though officials warned that naming a principal before approval is inappropriate and may be reversed if a school does not open.