6 former Cook County education officials face charges

Six former education officials from the Chicago area, including a former district superintendent and a Chicago Public Schools administrator, have been charged with corruption, authorities announced Wednesday.

Cook County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez announced the charges as part of an ongoing investigation of public officials and corruption called Operation Cookie Jar.

"We have been working diligently to step up our efforts and attack this problem, which as we all know, occurs all too often here in Cook County and in our state of Illinois," Alvarez said Wednesday at a news conference in Chicago.

Those charged include former Superintendent Alex Boyd, 65, of Richton Park. He's accused of misappropriating hundreds of thousands of dollars of district funds and using a district credit card on alcohol and restaurants, among other things. A listed phone number for Boyd could not be located Wednesday.

The others charged include another school district official and former administrators from Chicago Public Schools and the City Colleges of Chicago. The charges include theft, theft of government property and forgery.

The ongoing investigation has resulted in 27 arrests since 2010.