Getting to the Truth:
DCSD Senior Investigator and SWD HS Alum Garners Prestigious District Honor
After graduating from Southwest DeKalb High School in 2000, Jamel Crawford was determined to give back to the community and school district that helped shape him into the man he is today. He did that by becoming a DeKalb County School District (DCSD) employee. His experiences and rewards of being a DCSD alum led him to become an outstanding employee and be recognized for his outstanding work.
Crawford, a senior investigator in the district’s Employee Relations Department, was named DCSD’s Central Office Educational Support Professional of the Year during the DeKalb County School District’s 9th Annual Academy of Educational Excellence Awards earlier this year. He said it’s exciting and feels good to receive the honor.
“I appreciate the confidence that my colleagues and superiors have shown me by valuing my work ethics, professional disciplines, and performance,” Crawford said. “I am fortunate to work with such a great team. This truly has been a humbling experience that I will never forget.”
His team congratulated him with a surprise luncheon, and he was showered with congratulatory praise. Crawford has worked for DCSD since August 2006, starting as a Miller Grove Middle School paraprofessional. He then became a campus supervisor, followed by becoming a member of the Safe School’s Rapid Response Team. In 2015, he was hired as an investigator for the Office of Legal Affairs.
After graduating from Florida A&M University, Crawford wanted to pursue opportunities that best contributed to the success and welfare of students and decided the academic arena was a good fit, bringing him back to DCSD. He later earned his master’s degree in public administration.
“With increasing responsibilities through various job reassignments, excellent performance, and academic development, in 2015, I was ultimately assigned to an interim 30 days’ Employee Misconduct Investigations role in the Office of Legal Affairs,” he said. “Initially, the role was extremely challenging because it had been vacant for a significant period. After applying relentless energy to understand details and establish a working model, I persevered. Having done well, I was asked and accepted to take on the full-time role as an investigator.”
Crawford said the most rewarding part of his job is supporting DCSD students, parents, colleagues, supervisors, and internal and external stakeholders regarding employee misconduct.
“Although my job responsibilities are well defined, my tasks are ever-evolving based on the nature of the employee misconduct allegation. I apply due diligence to ensure that allegations of employee misconduct are confidentially, thoroughly, consistently, and fairly investigated to determine fact-based conclusions,” he said. “Overall, I develop and maintain healthy collaborative professional working relationships across DCSD through knowledge sharing and prompt response time to matters of internal investigations.”
After being recently promoted to senior investigator, Crawford said he was assured that best performances do not go unnoticed, and he hopes to advance his career with DCSD.
“I am confident that I will continuously be challenged with advanced levels of responsibilities to include being a major contributor in analyzing, making periodic edits, and updating the Employee Relations Policy and Procedures Manual with a direct emphasis on matters of employee misconduct,” he said. “While rendering quality service and best performance, I appreciate that possibilities for growth and development are always in view. Earning an administrator or director role for DCSD is an attainable goal.”