New Era Richmond has been appealing to the leadership of Richmond Public Schools on behalf of Blackwell Preschool mother, Ms. Shayla Roberts and her 5-year old daughter, since February 6, 2023.

Dr. Elaine Probst, the former principal of Blackwell Preschool in Richmond VA effective March 9, 2023 was pivotal in the breakdown of standard Title IX processes and procedures as it pertained to a horrendous assault that was inflicted upon the 5-year old daughter of Ms. Shayla Roberts by another 5-year old Blackwell Preschool student. In addition to the horrendous treatment received by Ms. Shayla Roberts and her daughter, other parents have made Richmond Public Schools aware of the blatant disrespect and unjust treatment they have been a victim of under the leadership of Elaine Probst. 

To add further insult to injury, on Wednesday, March 22, Ms. Roberts was briefed on the RPS internal investigation and told that RPS Employee Relations Interim Director, Sandra Lee, has closed her internal RPS investigation stating that “they cannot determine whether or not this assault happened at Blackwell Preschool.”

THIS IS ABSOLUTELY UNACCEPTABLE.  

WHERE IS THE EVIDENCE OF THIS? They have none. 

1. Ms. Shayla Robert’s 5-year daughter has spoken her truth and has undergone a RPD Forensic Interview to confirm this incident indeed happened at RPS Blackwell Preschool
2. The other minor child admitted to the assault and was subsequently put in “time-out” on the day of the assault.
3. Ms. Shayla Roberts allowed the RPS lead investigating team to speak directly with her daughter. 
4. Ms. Roberts has repeatedly been to the RPS school board and meetings with the Superintendent and there was never any implication from RPS that this incident did not occur at Blackwell Preschool

To suggest otherwise is damaging to the reputation and dedicated love and parenting that Ms. Roberts does for her children each and every day. To suggest otherwise calls into question her mothering and that is absolutely unacceptable and RPS will not get away with making that assertion. It is a typical tactic to deflect blame onto the victim and their family. This typical tactic is damaging and emotional distressful and we will not tolerate it. 

The point remains that Dr. Elaine Probst should resign. She lacks the skill set to understand what to do in a situation like this and it seems as though Sandra Lee also fails at understanding her role as well. She may in fact work on behalf of employees but she is employed by RPS and works for the students, family and community of Richmond. She is NOT Dr. Elaine Probst personal advocate and rescuer.  

To be clear, we arrived at this petition because Dr. Elaine Probst failed to offer compassion, empathy, concern, follow-up, follow-through or any sort of humanitarian outreach to Ms. Roberts during the most challenging moments of her life and her child's young life. 

These actions will be discussed in full detail below. Please see an abbreviated version here:

• Withholding Ms. Roberts daughter from her despite Ms. Roberts desperate calls 
• Hanging up in Ms. Roberts face when she attempted to find out the status of the investigation in the assault of her daughter 
• Disrespectful behavior and speaking in a tone that was dismissive, while having an overall toxic negativity that fueled Ms. Roberts to publicly seek answers from the Richmond Public School Board
• Creating barriers for parents to take an active stance in their children’s learning process 
• Withholding access to the physical school building from parents by requiring them to wait outside the building for any task related to their children 
• Sending letters to parents threatening police action and the risk of being banned from the school in response to parents attempting to advocate for themselves and their children 

After weeks of public pressure brought to the attention of the Richmond Public School Board on February 6 and also on March 6, the city of Richmond and surrounding communities were notified on March 9, 2023 that Dr. Elaine Probst had been reassigned. Some local news outlets reported that she had resigned but according to Richmond Public Schools Superintendent, Dr. Jason Kamras on March 9, he stated that "we have mutually decided that it would be best for her to step down from the principal role. I will be assigning her to assist the early childhood team under the leadership of Dr. Wiggins for the remainder of the year, effective tomorrow. "

In response, Dr. Elaine Probst released her own statement, in which she stated "I am proud of the work we have accomplished together during the past four years, and I am thankful to have had the opportunity to serve as leader in such a wonderful preschool. I am thrilled to embrace the next chapter in my life, however this experience will remain near and dear to my heart."

Taken in total, this reassignment and this response is problematic on many levels. 

• The actions, inactions and decisions Dr. Elaine Probst made from January 23, 2023 to February 7, 2023 are alarming and certainly should not offer anyone a sense that those were actions that a principal should be proud of. Publicly known actions such as hanging up on Ms. Roberts, withholding Ms. Robert's child from her, displaying rude and disrespectful behavior and speaking in a tone that was dismissive and annoyed while having an overall toxic negativity that fueled a parent to publicly seek answers from the Richmond Public School Board because Dr. Elaine Probst would not or refused to provide them. This kind of behavior from a principal  should not be rewarded with a reassignment. Students and staff are held to a far higher level of accountability than Dr. Elaine Probst is being held to. This is unacceptable. 

 

• Publicly, there has been no acknowledgment on behalf of Dr. Elaine Probst that she takes any responsibility for the position she found herself in, not even to suggest that she could have done things differently or even that she wished the situation did not occur. Nothing. Not even a simple apology for how she found herself reassigned as a result of public pressure. Not even an apology for the disruption her decisions and inaction caused her staff, other parents and students who matriculate at Blackwell Preschool. Her only response was that she was "proud" of the work that she has done the past four years and she’s thrilled about a new opportunity. 
  This type of response makes sense for someone who willingly moved into a new position because they sought the position. This type of response is for someone who interviewed for this position and competed for it and was offered the position because they are the most qualified after a competitive hiring process. This type of response is what a professional provides when they are leaving their former employer in a great position and they are bringing light, knowledge and professionalism to their next position. This is not the response you provide when an internal investigation is still incomplete. This is not the kind of response one provides when a child and her parent has been harmed, long term, by your actions and inaction. For Dr. Elaine Probst's decision to concoct this response shows her level of insensitivity and disregard for children, and this family in particular. 

 

• It is beyond problematic that Dr. Elaine Probst is still somehow in a more expanded leadership position whose duties now include even more children within the early childhood education system of RPS and not just Blackwell Preschool. What type of logical sense does that make? Her recent failure as it pertains to the decisions she made on January 23, 2023 to February 7, 2023 is enough evidence that she does not need to be involved in any way with early childhood education of any youngster. None. Anywhere. The rewarding of this new expanded leadership position across the early childhood education program is nothing more than a slap in the face to the parents of Blackwell Preschool and especially to Ms. Shayla Roberts who raised these issues. How is it sensical to plead with the School Board on February 6, 2023 regarding the actions of Dr. Elaine Probst, someone who is still the center of an RPS investigation, only to have the principal rewarded and reassigned over an even larger number of Richmond Public School preschoolers and early education students on March 9? 

 

• Richmond Public Schools is filled with compassionate, dedicated, honest, hard-working, loving teachers, both men and women, professionals and staff who are devoted to the children of Richmond Public Schools. We know this. Perhaps at one time, Dr. Elaine Probst was one of these professionals but she certainly was not from January 23, 2023 to February 7, 2023 when Ms. Roberts last had contact with her. What we do know is that any of those devoted teachers and administrators referenced would have handled this situation completely differently than the way Dr. Elaine Probst handled this assault. It did not have to come to this. 

Now that the Richmond community has appealed to New Era Richmond to continue to do more since Dr. Elaine Probst has been reassigned and not resigned, we are seeking signatures and action to ensure she ultimately resigns. Effective immediately. There should be no thrilling anticipation of another role impacting our most precious learners, the early education of precious babies of the families in Richmond Virginia. Her next reassignment should be resignation, and it's a resignation that she has earned.  

Please sign this petition so that we can demand more be done by Richmond Public School. 

Dr. Elaine Probst must resign. Our community needs to heal and accountability must be upheld.

 

 

New Era Richmond, a local mudroots organization, is a member of the New Era Nation and was founded in Richmond VA in 2020 under the leadership of our founding chapter, New Era Detroit. For more information, our website is www.neweraworld.work and our Instagram is @newera_rva