The superintendent of a major school district in suburban Atlanta has been indicted and placed on leave, after federal officials say he stole money and received at least $80,000 in kickbacks while at his previous district in Illinois.
Since 2023, the superintendent, Devon Horton, has led schools in DeKalb County, one of the largest school districts in Georgia and the country, with about 90,000 students.
But federal officials say that he secretly ran a scheme to defraud his previous school district, which covers the Chicago suburbs of Skokie, Ill., and Evanston, Ill., home to Northwestern University.
Dr. Horton is accused of defrauding the district of thousands of dollars by approving contracts with vendors run by his friends and then receiving kickbacks, according to an indictment filed in federal court in Illinois on Wednesday.
He is accused of approving at least $280,000 in contracts, without disclosing that he would benefit, and receiving at least $80,000 in kickbacks, according to the indictment.
Dr. Horton joined the Evanston school district, District 65, in the summer of 2020, at the height of the pandemic and the country’s racial reckoning after the murder of George Floyd. He was vocal in his push to promote racial equity and close achievement gaps in the district, which is 40 percent white, 22 percent Black and 22 percent Hispanic, with wide gaps in test scores.
In 2020, he made waves by announcing that students from marginalized backgrounds would get priority for in-person learning. This is “about equity for Black and brown students, for special education students, for our L.G.B.T.Q. students,” he said at the time.
In 2022, he was named superintendent of the year by the National Alliance of Black School Educators.
The school district in Evanston is now under investigation by the Trump administration for its racial equity efforts, including antiracism training sessions for teachers. The administration has accused the district of racial segregation and stereotyping through practices like “privilege walks” and racial affinity groups. The district has defended its programs as lawful.
Terence Campbell, a lawyer for Dr. Horton, said in a statement that the superintendent had “tackled head-on a number of tough and sometimes controversial issues often under difficult circumstances” during his time in Evanston, and had helped raise graduation rates and improve student attendance in DeKalb County, Ga.
“Dr. Horton is eager to address his case in court so he can return his focus to bettering the lives and education of children,” the statement said.
Dr. Horton, who earns $360,000 a year as superintendent in DeKalb County and recently received a contract extension, was placed on paid administration leave late Thursday.
Sarah Mervosh covers education for The Times, focusing on K-12 schools.
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