Amherst High School Has Homosexual Scandal

Principal Admits to Inappropriate Conduct

February 2002

The principal of the Amherst high school has resigned because of ”allegations” about him and a male student, it was reported by the Hampshire Gazette last month.

Afterward, the residents of the town were buzzing that the principal has no wife and has a young adopted son living with him. But that was not reported by the Gazette.

The Globe ran a large story a week afterward but reported nothing news.

Since the matter was referred to DSS by the mother of the student, it is expected that social workers should be visiting the home.

Amherst is one of the most tolerant areas of the state toward homosexuality and it is expected by many that this will cause a storm to be mounted against that policy.

Although the matter was apparently being covered-up by the Superintendent and the school committee, a group of parents forced the issue at a Jan. 15 meeting of the committee, according to the Gazette.

As a result, the attorney for the principal, Stephen Myers, left the meeting and returned a short time later with an oral statement from Myers that, “My primary concern is for my staff and students, and for this community. For that reason, I have decided to step down as Principal.”

Superintendent Knew

The Superintendent, Gus Sayer, knew about the incident and had previously acknowledged it in a letter to the boy’s mother on Dec. 18. But when the matter was raised at the meeting, Sayer’s reaction was to question how his letter became public, according to the Gazette.

The Superintendent’s letter had said, “I did not mean to minimize or in any way excuse the details of the incidents you and [name] conveyed to me earlier this month. Mr. Myers did request to see [student’s] nipple and [student] consented. Mr. Myers did invite [student] to his home and tell him that he had a hot tub there. These actions were improper, as was his invitation to take [student] to a movie, in my judgment.”

The letter also said the Superintendent “would be extremely disappointed and forced to take strong action” if he were to learn that such behavior was continuing.

In answer to the question as to how the letter had become public, a friend of the mother reported that she had requested that it be done.

“She felt that the interest of the children was not the first and foremost concern in this community or by this school committee,” the friend informed the committee. The friend said that the mother had notified both the Superintendent and the Chairwoman of the school committee, Barbara Love.

Several parents wanted to know if a 51A report had been filed with DSS within 48 hours as is required of all teachers whenever sexual abuse is suspected of any child. It was determined at the meeting that no report was filed by anyone until the friend of the mother did so the day of the meeting..

The Principal, who is 55, moved to Amherst from Denver to take the post last August. The school is regional and its official title is Amherst Regional High School.

Continues to Stonewall

The Committee continued to stonewall a week later at its meeting on January 22, according to the Gazette.

No parents were allowed to speak although four teachers read prepared statements plus a student spoke who said he had a letter of support for the principal.

The teachers seemed to be expressing concern that criticism of the principal could cause them to be less supportive of their students.

The Gazette wrote, “Nina Koch, a math teacher, spoke about the risks teachers take when they try and reach out to students.”

Some parents wondered whether the teachers were able to distinguish between “reaching out to students” and looking at their nipples.

It remains to be seen whether the Committee will be able to bottle up the concern over this scandal.