Records show that Chicago school board member Carlos Rivas Jr. was temporarily suspended from his job at the Noble Network of Charter Schools in 2018 after an investigation found he had become intoxicated at a work event and acted inappropriately with a co-worker. The disclosure lands just days before the Northwest Side District 3B incumbent faces challenger Jason Dónes in the Nov. 3 general election.
According to WBEZ, a Noble investigation found that Rivas engaged in unwanted touching of another employee without consent at an August 2018 event at The Robey Chicago hotel, a violation of the charter network's harassment policy. At the time, Rivas worked as alumni support and external affairs manager at UIC College Prep, one of Noble's schools.
Rivas told investigators he could not deny the allegations because he said he could not remember what happened that evening, per the same account. Noble had previously warned him about intoxication at work-related events, the station reports, and in a letter sent in September 2018, the network said any failure to meet the terms of his agreement or any recurrence of inappropriate conduct would result in immediate termination.
Suspension Terms and a Return to Noble
Rivas agreed to a 10-day suspension without pay, a commitment to abstain from intoxicating substances at work and work-related events, and counseling through Noble's employee assistance program, the outlet's reporting states. He kept his position at Noble until 2022, when he became public affairs director for the Civilian Office of Police Accountability, a job he still holds, according to COPA, which notes he joined the agency in June 2022 after eight years at Noble Schools. Noble did not immediately respond to a request for comment, per the same report.
Rivas said the resurfacing of the incident so close to the election was disappointing. He said the incident occurred eight years earlier while he was caring for his mother, who had end-stage renal failure and dementia, and that he took responsibility, received support through Noble's employee assistance program, and continued serving Noble students and families for another four years. He also said the experience motivated him to champion mental health support for school employees.
A Rematch With Money and Unions on Both Sides
Rivas is the incumbent in District 3B, running again against Jason Dónes, according to the Chicago Tribune. Dónes is an executive at an education nonprofit who ran unsuccessfully for the same seat in 2024, the paper notes. The two men both grew up in Humboldt Park, graduated from selective-enrollment Chicago public high schools and became teachers through Teach for America, according to Borderless Magazine.
Dónes is backed by the Chicago Teachers Union and several Northwest Side elected officials, while Rivas is supported by the Service Employees International Union Illinois State Council, which represents thousands of CPS school support staff, per Chalkbeat Chicago. Rivas has also won the backing of the Common Ground Collective, a group heavily funded by billionaire Michael Sacks, while both candidates identify as progressives, Chalkbeat reports.
Our Schools, a political action committee funded by the Chicago Teachers Union, had spent about $20,000 supporting Dónes' candidacy as of the end of September and is distributing mailers highlighting the Noble investigation while urging voters to oppose Rivas, per the WBEZ report. In 2024, Rivas won that race with 54% of the vote to Dónes' 46%, according to WBEZ's election coverage and Chalkbeat. Nearly $7 million had been spent on Chicago's 2024 school board elections overall, including close to $4 million raised directly by candidates and almost $3 million from outside super PACs, Chalkbeat found — with roughly $280,000 from pro-school-choice groups backing Rivas and more than $250,000 in support flowing to Dónes from CTU-aligned committees.
What's at Stake for District 3B Students
This November marks the first time all 21 seats on the Chicago Board of Education will be contested in a single general election, according to Block Club Chicago. The board oversees Chicago Public Schools, which educates roughly 305,000 children across more than 600 schools citywide, per the same voter guide.
District 3B schools are struggling with teacher and counselor shortages, higher property taxes, and low enrollment amid rapid gentrification and neighborhood change, Chalkbeat reports. Rivas was one of six board members who voted against the district's amended budget, which included uncommitted state revenue, according to Chalkbeat's voter guide — a vote that has become part of his record heading into Election Day alongside the resurfaced 2018 suspension.
