A Queens high school principal accused of sexual harassment and discrimination in multiple lawsuits, which have cost New York City more than $600,000 to settle, has been reassigned.

The principal, Howard Kwait, was reassigned on Friday after Richard A. Carranza, the newly appointed schools chancellor, reviewed the lawsuits against Mr. Kwait, according to Toya Holness, a spokeswoman for the Education Department.



Mr. Kwait, principal of John Bowne High School in Flushing since 2006, was transferred “to a central office where he will be closely supervised and will no longer be permitted to manage other employees,” Ms. Holness said in a statement. “Schools must be safe, welcome and inclusive environments for all students and staff, and we will do everything in our power to hold employees accountable for meeting these standards.”

Mr. Kwait could not be reached for comment.

Mayor Bill de Blasio has come under scrutiny recently for the handling of sexual harassment cases across city agencies, especially at the Education Department. The city has admitted that it has no consistent system to track sexual harassment complaints against employees, making it difficult to analyze the total number of complaints as well as how employees in substantiated cases were disciplined.