Wilmington, North Carolina: A long hard look at New Hanover County Schools’ arrests, allegations ...

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    Deep Dive: A long hard look at New Hanover County Schools’ arrests, allegations, and administration [Free read]

    For the third time in two years, an employee with the New Hanover County Schools district has been arrested and charged with felony sex crimes against students. As details emerged, tensions and emotions ran high, until the week ended with an off-kilter press conference that left the public with more questions than answers — and a damaged sense of trust in the school system. Peter Michael Frank, 47, was arrested on Monday after he surrendered himself to the New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office (NHCSO). Frank was charged with 12 felony counts of taking indecent liberties with children and students, with ...


    Richard Priode:

    Before Kelly, Oates, or Frank, there was Richard Priode, who served as the band director at Laney High School from 1997 to 2001. At the time, a parent alleged that Priode had “physically assaulted” and “sexually harassed, with no physical contact” her daughter. The parent wrote a total of 19 letters to administration and staff, including former Deputy-Superintendent Rick Holliday (who was then the Laney principal), former Board of Education members Don Hayes and Ed Higgins, as well as board member Jeanette Nichols, who is still serving on the Board today. [Note: You can find the parent’s full account here, ...


    Michael Earl Kelly:

    One of the earliest complaints against Kelly came from concerned parent Caroline Kuebler, who first spoke to WECT in February of 2018, shortly after Kelly was arrested. Missing records: Kuebler produced a copy of a formal complaint sent to the administration (namely, then-Superintendent Morris) dated January 9, 2004, concerning Kelly’s actions; according to Kuebler, she approached first Kelly and then Holliday with concerns about Kelly’s behavior and Kelly retaliated by docking her son’s grade. After exhausting her options with Kelly and Holliday, she then filed the complaint. The school district stated it only kept complaints on file starting the following ...


    Nicholas Lavon Oates:

    Nicholas Lavon Oates never made it to trial, which has — at least for the time being — prevented the public from getting answers to serious questions about why he was hired, despite a history of violent and sexual misconduct, and why he wasn’t fired, despite having a sexual relationship with a student. Oates died last year in New Hanover Regional Medical Center, apparently from a chronic condition which he had been suffering from while awaiting trial for over a year. Details on his condition were sparse, and the Office of the North Carolina Medical Examiner has not yet returned ...


    Peter Frank:

    The arrest of Peter Michael Frank this week echoes many of the concerns that parents, students, and the public have voiced in the Priode, Kelly, and Oates cases. According to search warrants for Frank’s NHCS personnel file, records at Roland Grise indicate a history of “inappropriate relationships” with students dating back to 1999 — a pattern of behavior for which he was counseled but never fired or suspended (Frank was suspended without pay once, in 2015, but NHCS claims it was for an incident not involving students). Despite the evidence against Frank —- including Frank’s own admission of sexual attraction ...


    Allegations of retaliation and intimidation, policy lapses:

    Concerns about NHCS extended beyond headline arrests. There has also been a series of allegations against the administration for attempting to retaliate against or intimidate parents, students, and employees. The district is currently named in multiple complaints containing allegations of retaliation filed with the U.S. Department of Education Office of Civil Rights. These include allegations that the administration retaliated against the student of a parent who had pointed out that the school’s service animal policy violated federal law. They also include multiple allegations that the administration retaliated against parent — and his daughter — after being challenged on its alleged ...


    Accountability:

    Taken individually, each one of these incidents and allegations provoked public concern. Taken together, it has prompted the question: is there something more deeply wrong with the culture of NHCS? And, if so, who is responsible? During this week’s Board of Education press conference, Chairwoman Estep declined to say if the Board or she herself still had faith in the administration. Facing head-on questions about firing Superintendent Markley, Board members equivocated, hinting at frustration but declining to comment directly. At the close of that conference, Board member Judy Justice said, “we are responsible, ultimately. We are the people who are ...


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