NYC Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels promises accountability in DOE contracts while under probe himself for shady deals

Scandal-plagued NYC Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels promised a total overhaul of the city’s dysfunctional procurement system — without mentioning that he remains under investigation over alleged procurement violations of his own.“As a taxpayer, I believe that every dollar spent in our schools should be transparent, accountable, and in the service of student success,” Samuels — who is accused of skirting the city’s competitive bidding rules — said Thursday.Samuels, flanked by Gov.Kathy Hochul and Mayor Zohran Mamdani at a press conference at Mama Tingo’s Childcare Center in Washington Heights, joined Hizzoner in pledging that the reforms will save city taxpayers more than $100 million over this fiscal year and next by cutting red tape in the procurement process and modernizing contract software.Critics, however, blasted Samuels’ promise of transparency and accountability as rank hypocrisy given the ongoing probe into his own conduct.“Chancellor Samuels announcing procurement reform is akin to Jack the Ripper announcing a public safety initiative, the announcement makes one thing clear: he expects the department to adhere to a standard he does not apply to himself,” a City Hall insider said.

Samuels was exposed by The Post for signing a $180,000 no-bid contract with a vendor that had not been approved by the Department of Education and splitting payments between two companies to evade city oversight when he was District 3 superintendent in 2023.A neatly identical contract was signed by his then-deputy superintendent, Mariela Graham, and the same vendor, Sean Kreyling, the following year.An investigation by the Special Commissioner of Inquiry Anastasia Coleman was launched after it was reported that the Samuels-contracted vendor unknowingly sent a teacher who was banned from teaching in DOE schools due to sexual misconduct into two Manhattan schools for months.A 2025 SCI report pinned all the blame on Graham, and recommended she be fired and ne...