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Who are we?

We are a group of USN parents who love the school and want it to live up to its values and mission so that our children can thrive.

Why are we concerned?

Last May, a high school student accused a teacher of sexual harassment. The school responded by terminating the teacher, telling families only that he “violated school policies.”

We now know, thanks to a lawsuit, that USN agreed to pay the teacher a severance of around $28,000 and to not mention the allegations to any prospective employer. The severance agreement reads: “USN only will provide your dates of employment and position held.”

Below is a brief account from the student about her terrible experience around reporting the issue to USN and a longer letter from her attorney to the Board of Trustees that outlines her allegations and concerns in detail. Student’s letter to the Board Attorney’s letter to the Board

How has the school responded?

September 10, 2024

Two-and-a-half weeks after receiving the letter from attorney Alex Little outlining the investigation missteps, administration’s poor treatment of the student, and the devastating emotional impact this has had on her and other students, the USN Board of Trustees sent a letter signed by President Eric Kopstain to the USN community.

Among its claims:

Administrators’ top concern was the well-being of the student.
The Board was engaged in this process and believes the investigation was handled professionally and appropriately.

September 13, 2024

After receiving outraged letters and phone calls, the Board was forced to backtrack three days later. A second letter claimed that “new information” had come to light that was now requiring a second investigation, this time with a new law firm.

September 20, 2024

Another letter was sent, this time from a new Ad Hoc Committee for School Safety (composed of Board members and ex-officio members, 5 men and 2 women) that apologized for how the misconduct allegations were handled. It also introduced the idea of a task force to help formulate how to respond to similar situations in the future. Notably, this task force will not be involved in the investigation of the current sexual harassment claims.

September 26, 2024

After the faculty took a vote of “no confidence” in the continued leadership of Amani Reed, Quinton Walker, and Eric Kopstain, the Ad Hoc Committee sent a second email. Although not all faculty voted, the results were telling.

Director Amani Reed: No Confidence: 92 , Confidence: 5 , Abstain: 15 , TOTAL: 112
Dr. Quinton Walker: No Confidence: 78 , Confidence: 12 , Abstain: 22 , TOTAL: 112
Eric Kopstain: No Confidence: 78 , Confidence: 6 , Abstain: 28 , TOTAL: 112

In addition, more than 250 parents signed a letter of no confidence that is still live and collecting signatures.

Despite all of this, the Ad Hoc Committee said that the Board will continue to “work in close partnership with USN Director Amani Reed and senior administration.” Eric Kopstain is one of seven members of the Ad Hoc Committee.

October 4, 2024

In response to concerns about the independence of the new investigation, the Ad Hoc committee sent a new email. This linked to a letter from the new attorneys at Barnes and Thornburg.

The letter makes clear that the new attorneys are obligated to follow the directions of the Ad Hoc Committee. Those directions are to act independently. However, the Ad Hoc Committee has set the scope of the investigation and is the body that must approve any changes to that scope. It is also the body that will receive the results of the investigation and decide what to share with the larger USN community.

What do we want?

Our primary goal now is to ensure that the investigation is truly an independent one that all members of the USN community can have confidence in. This cannot happen while the same people responsible for overseeing the earlier investigation — one that we were assured the Board was “engaged in” and was “handled professionally and appropriately” — are ultimately in charge of the new investigation.

The fact that they have instructed the new attorneys to act independently is not enough. They should not be the ones whom those independent attorneys will consult if they believe the scope of the investigation should be broadened. They should not be the ones who ultimately decide how much of the investigation is made public.

In 2018, the National Association of Independent Schools published the Independent School Task Force on Educator Sexual Misconduct Report. On page 29, the report recommends the following:

“Anyone whose conduct may be called into question, whether an administrator, faculty member, staff member, or even a trustee, should be isolated from the investigation and from conversations about how the investigation is proceeding. It is better to err on the side of caution and avoid even an appearance of a conflict.”

The Board of Trustees and Ad Hoc Committee on School Safety must agree to follow this best practice.

If students do not have confidence in this investigation, we cannot expect them to come forward and report abuse in the future.

What can you do?

The Board only agreed to a new investigation under pressure from students, faculty, and parents. We must keep up the pressure for them to do the right thing.

Please sign this letter asking the entire USN Board of Trustees to recuse themselves from ANY oversight of the investigation and calling for a fully independent committee, one that can steer the investigation without any conflicts of interest.

You can also sign the “no confidence” letter in school leadership here.

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You can reach out to us with any questions, comments or concerns here.

If you would like to send your own letter to the Board of Trustees, there is no group email address that we are aware of. You must send to each individual on the Board. Reach out to us if you need help doing this.