Durham schools fire deputy superintendent accused of covering up child abuse
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Durham Public Schools fired deputy superintendent charged with obstructing justice.
- Board cited overstepping authority, poor communication and policy failures.
- District launched independent probe and mandated retraining on abuse reporting.
All three administrators facing criminal charges for allegedly covering up a child -abuse case at a Durham elementary school no longer work for the school district.
Tanya Giovanni was fired from her position as a Durham Public Schools deputy superintendent on March 6, according to a copy of her termination letter obtained by The News & Observer. Giovanni was charged with five counts of obstructing justice during an investigation into how a student with autism was tied to a chair at Eno Valley Elementary School in 2024.
Giovanni is one of two senior administrators who were fired after being indicted. The school’s principal was also indicted and resigned her position in January, the N&O previously reported.
The abuse case is one of five reasons cited in the school district’s letter for firing Giovanni from her position as chief of staff and deputy superintendent for Administrative, Legal and Compliance Services.
“The Board found that the evidence established a pattern of overstepping authority, failure of adequate communication, lack of accountability, and failure to follow Board policies, warranting dismissal,” Bettina Umstead, chair of the Durham school board, wrote in the letter to Giovanni dated March 17.
Giovanni didn’t respond Friday to an email from the N&O requesting comment. The N&O was not able to immediately reach her attorney on Friday.
Accused of not cooperating with abuse investigation
The investigation began after a photo surfaced showing the student tied to a chair with rope. Since then, the student’s family has filed a lawsuit against the school district over the incident.
The three Durham school employees were indicted by a grand jury in January.
The indictment against Giovanni states:
- Giovanni allegedly didn’t turn over evidence in the district’s possession in response to search warrants and court orders.
- Giovanni allegedly interrupted Ayesha Hunter’s responses and limited the scope of questions during a meeting with law enforcement. Hunter was indicted and fired in February from her position as senior executive director of Employee Relations, the N&O previously reported.
- Giovanni allegedly failed to disclose to law enforcement that she had a notarized affidavit from Eno Valley’s principal about the photo.
- Giovanni is accused of saying during a court hearing that the district didn’t have an investigative file on the abuse allegations.
The school board unanimously fired Giovanni based on a recommendation from Superintendent Anthony Lewis, according to the termination letter. Giovanni had been suspended with pay before fired on March 6.
“You failed to cooperate with a child abuse investigation and to effectively communicate about the protracted efforts by law enforcement to secure records from DPS in compliance with search warrants, subpoenas, and court orders, as well as related missteps,” according to the termination letter.
Lewis has said the school system is conducting an independent investigation with the help of a Raleigh law firm and that all staff are being required to be retrained on responding to and reporting suspected incidents of child abuse, the N&O previously reported.
Accused of approving pay bonuses without permission
The other firing reasons cited in Giovnani’s termination notice are:
- Giovanni allegedly unilaterally approved — without authorization or notification to the superintendent and school board — the filing of a lawsuit on the district’s behalf in November.
- Giovanni allegedly ended without notification or authorization the district’s contract with SitelogIQ. The district had partnered with SitelogIQ on an energy management program, including purchasing electric school buses.
- Giovanni allegedly interfered with a meeting that an administrator held at the superintendent’s direction with staff on Dec. 15.
- Giovanni allegedly unilaterally approved without authorization paying $250 bonuses to some employees. It was done without notifying the superintendent, chief finance officer or the school board.
The district said the details surrounding Giovanni’s termination are a confidential personnel matter.
But the district cited a few public records in response to the N&O’s questions. This includes a November lawsuit involving the school district as it concerns workers’ compensation benefits paid to or on behalf of Anitra Lashawn McInnis.
Despite the issues cited in the termination letter, board chair Umstead told Giovanni she had “performed your duties well in many regards.”
This story was originally published March 27, 2026 at 1:44 PM.
