From Cahokia Heist to Grand Theft Education?

In my column entitled “Cahokia Heist,” I introduced readers to School District 187 in Cahokia Heights, Illinois, and the contentious relationship between Superintendent Curtis McCall Jr. and the Cahokia Federation of Teachers Local 1272.

Since that time, the teachers and staff of District 187 have continued to work without a contract, having done so since entering the 2025 school year.

Unfortunately, the dispute has only intensified, with union leaders raising fresh allegations involving district finances, personnel records and the specter of calls for a state and federal investigation into ghost employees, illicit payouts and obstruction; claims the district firmly denies.

At a February 11 press conference, Ray Roskos, Illinois Federation of Teachers Field Service Director and Wendy Lochmann, Local Union 1272 President said that they were denied multiple Freedom of Information Act requests, seeking records tied to several district employees. 

During that same press conference, reporters were provided with a cache of records and documents, many obtained from anonymous whistleblowers, to corroborate their allegations regarding questionable payroll practices and recordkeeping within the district.

Among those claims, raised by union officials were allegations that former superintendent Dr. Arnett Harvey, who served from 2019-2023, received four payments totaling $406,000, in addition to his monthly paychecks for 2024, based upon documents provided by the union representatives.

They further alleged that Harvey’s wife, Ciara Corley, who served as District 187’s chief financial officer, did not report those overpayments in her monthly financial reports.

The union also questioned records related to Leonard Manley who was identified, by officials, as an assistant athletic director, in contradiction to board documents stating that he was terminated in July 2025 and Stephen Brown, who was alleged as working full time as an attendance officer while, concurrently, serving as the Cahokia Heights’ chief of police.

But one of the most egregious allegations raised by the union involves Dr. Stephanie Sculark-Belt, the district’s director of non-certified personnel. Dr. Belt also happens to be the wife of IL State Senator Christopher Belt and the aunt of District 187 Superintendent Curtis McCall, Jr.

Union officials claim that Dr. Belt’s late mother, Minnie Taylor, was listed on the district payroll as a student retention staff member, for two years, and that district funds were used to cover certain insurance-related payments for her. The union provided documents which, they claim, supports those concerns.

District officials have disputed the allegations yet refused to provide Ms. Taylor’s employment records upon request. But Mr. Roskos provided two receipts, stamped by Belt, to verify the questionable payments.

Meanwhile, Superintendent McCall has conveniently been unavailable for comment but has issued written denials prior to the press conference, with no corroborating evidence, stating that the allegations “did not have any merit” and that “nothing illegal has transpired in the district.” We shall see. 

However, the Cahokia Federation of Teachers are not giving McCall’s denials merit. In fact, they are asking St. Clair County State’s Attorney Jim Gomric, Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul and U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois Steven Weinhoeft to investigate their allegations.

And with President Donald Trump’s stated desire to dismantle the Department of Education and IL Governor JB Pritzker’s potential run for the presidency, there is little appetite for allowing Cahokia Heights officials to trifle with federal education dollars. Stay tuned. This alleged grand theft of education funds will not end well if proven to be true.

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