Fired Schools Chief Quits New Job Amid Fresh Allegations

J.L. Handy, the superintendent of a small, financially troubled East Bay school district, has resigned in the face of a mounting investigation into his financial practices.

The 60-year-old Handy, who was fired as superintendent of Compton schools in 1992 amid allegations of financial mismanagement just before an unprecedented state takeover, has been the subject of a recent probe into his activities as head of the 900-student Emery School District.

Handy, who had served as Emery superintendent since 1993, submitted a two-sentence handwritten resignation letter Saturday, three days after the cash-strapped district placed him on administrative leave.

District spokesman James McGrew said Tuesday that state and local school auditors would continue investigating in several areas, including Handy’s expense reimbursements, credit card bills and cellular telephone bills. The district, which has three schools, is between Oakland and Berkeley in Alameda County.

A statement released Tuesday by the Alameda County Office of Education said that an investigation “revealed a possible misuse of funds which are significant in amount and serious in nature.”

School officials say Handy apparently used the district credit card for automobile repairs and to purchase personal items, such as leather goods and luggage during trips made when he was supposedly on vacation, according to a report released by the district.

There were also numerous unexplained trips to Southern California, stays at hotels in the East Bay community and charges for a summer workshop at Harvard University that Handy never attended, the report concluded.

McGrew said: “Our initial staff report indicates that we need to do some further investigation.”

Handy used a district credit card to charge $62,000 from March 1998 through last month and was reimbursed $70,000 for expenses from 1993 to 1999, according to the district’s release.

School officials say an Alameda County grand jury is also investigating Handy’s management of funds, including whether millions in voter-approved bond money earmarked for school construction was used inappropriately.

Handy could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

Officials have appointed a temporary replacement for Handy and say they will no longer pay his $115,000 annual salary, even though he has three years remaining on his contract.