Arlington HS employee under investigation, accused of inappropriately touching students
A parent said the now-suspended employee would let his daughter and other students pass time in his office, and that over time he started commenting on their bodies, giving them gifts, and then inappropriately touching them.
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Dutchess County deputies and the Arlington School District are investigating allegations that an Arlington High School employee inappropriately touched several female students over several months.
The longtime non-teaching employee at the high school is on administrative leave while the accusations are investigated.
The families of at least two students have filed Title IX complaints with the US Department of Education.
"He was truly grooming them for something," said one parent of a student, who News 12 is not identifying.
The parent said the employee would let his daughter and other students pass time in his office, and that over time he started commenting on their bodies, giving them gifts, and then inappropriately touching them.
News 12 is not yet naming the employee since he has not been charged.
A spokesperson for the Dutchess County Sheriff's Office confirmed in an email the agency is "investigating alleged, inappropriate conduct by an Arlington Central School District employee."
"[He was] trying to form some type of friendship and trust with them and then slowly, surely escalating his behavior," the parent said of the employee's actions.
He said the district's first move was to tell the students to stay away from the employee in question.
"The accountability isn't there, the parent said. "It's brushed off. The accountability is put on the victims, and that just can't be allowed in this situation."
The parent said that after he filed the complaint on May 13th, the district suspended the employee and began its own investigation.
Late last week Superintendent Philip Benante put out a statement saying the district immediately notified the sheriff's office upon learning of the allegations, and that school leaders "have been in contact with students and families directly affected by this situation and are committed to providing them with ongoing support."
The parent said that, so far, the district has only offered his daughter counseling by employees of the district.
He is still lobbying the district to pay for independent, outside counselors considering the family's experience with the district regarding the allegations which has caused the family to "lose all faith" in the district.
News 12 reached out to the suspended employee seeking comment, and has not received a response.
