NYC Schools Chancellor Accused of Ignoring Pleas to Fire Failing Principal

NYC Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels is accused of ignoring persistent pleas from parents to remove the principal of P.S. 307, a Brooklyn public school where New York Times writer Nikole Hannah-Jones sent her daughter. A former Department of Education official stated that Samuels, who served as superintendent of Brooklyn's District 13 from 2019 to 2022, was aware of parent dissatisfaction with Principal Stephanie Carroll's leadership but took no action.

"For the three or four years he was superintendent there he did nothing with her," the former official told The Post. "This is what Samuels does: he just doesn’t take action and lets problems fester until they explode."

During Samuels' tenure as superintendent, student proficiency in reading at P.S. 307 hovered around 28% in 2019 and dropped to 13.6% by 2022. David Goldsmith, former president of the District 13 Community Education Council, described the school's leadership under Carroll as "a ship without a rudder," adding that she "wasn't up to the task."

Nikole Hannah-Jones, in a New York Times Magazine article, described P.S. 307 as a "chaotic hellscape" with issues including fabricated grades, a lack of homework, and unsupervised students. She claimed Carroll was often absent and uncommunicative. Frustrated parents submitted a Change.org petition in 2023 urging the DOE to dismiss Carroll.

Despite these concerns, Carroll was promoted in 2024 to citywide director of literacy. "How are you promoted to run literacy for the entire city when you can’t even get your own students to read?" questioned the former DOE official.

Hannah-Jones did not name Carroll or Samuels in her article, instead attributing the school's problems to racism, a narrative critics argue deflects from the DOE's failures. "Blaming the PS 307 teachers while not even naming the trash principal is disingenuous. If you can’t call out the person in charge frankly you’re part of the problem," stated another DOE source.

Despite Hannah-Jones' criticisms of P.S. 307, she and Samuels appeared to maintain a cordial relationship. In April 2021, Samuels announced on X that "The 1619 Project" and "Born on the Water" would be read across District 13. In September 2022, in response to Hannah-Jones' post about her daughter attending a neighborhood public school, Samuels replied, "Warms my heart to see this."

Samuels, who was appointed NYC schools chancellor in January, was lauded by Hannah-Jones on Bluesky in December 2025 as an "outstanding" choice for those prioritizing school integration and equality.

Hannah-Jones' husband, Faraji Hannah-Jones, served as the contracts committee chair for the Panel for Education Policy. He previously worked as an unpaid Web Design Specialist for P.S. 307 from September 2015 to May 2016.

Nikole Hannah-Jones, Faraji Hannah-Jones, Carroll, and the DOE did not respond to requests for comment from The Post.