pingry school letters to parents, alumni

8/18/2019 Pingry School letters to parents, alumni

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March 28, 2016

Dear Pingry Parents,

We are writing to you today with distressing news concerning our past that we feel is important to sharewith our community. We recently learned from a few of our alumni that students were sexually abused by

Thad Alton, an employee of Short Hills Country Day School from 1972 to 1974 and, following the

merger of the two institutions, an employee of The Pingry School from 1974 to 1978.

After leaving Pingry, Mr. Alton eventually moved to upstate New York and by 1981 was working at a

university there. In 1990, he was convicted in New York State of two counts of sexual abuse of minors.

Mr. Alton was incarcerated until 1995. Currently, he is listed on the New York State Sex Offender

Registry with an address in Manhattan.

We want to assure the Pingry community that we are taking this matter very seriously. We have contacted

local law enforcement, informed them of the allegations, and are committed to assisting them in theirinvestigation.

While these events took place many years ago, we realize that they continue to cause pain for members of

our community. It is sickening that an educator, entrusted with the responsibility of protecting children,

would cause such suffering. Behavior of this nature is appalling and deplorable.

The safety and well-being of our students are our highest priorities. On a regular basis, Pingry undertakes

a review of its policies and procedures to ensure safeguards are built in to the School’s operating

procedures. In addition to conducting a thorough vetting process prior to hiring an employee, we also vet

members of the community and other visitors to the School prior to allowing them access to our

buildings. Our faculty and staff receive professional development that emphasizes student safety,

maintaining appropriate boundaries, reporting requirements, and vigilance for the detection of

inappropriate behavior. Our students receive education and guidance about appropriate, healthy

relationships, both with peers and with adults, through our health curriculum, advisory system, and peer

leadership program. Our counseling staff on both campuses is closely involved in these efforts and in

creating an environment in which students feel empowered to voice any concerns that they may have.

We are committed to supporting those in our community who have been subject to this unconscionable

behavior. The Board of Trustees has approved the engagement of T&M Protection Resources, a highly

qualified, professional firm with significant experience in matters similar to this, to conduct a thorough,

independent investigation into the events of the 1970s. Once the investigation is complete, we will

provide a further update to the community.

We are reaching out to our alumni to encourage them to come forward if they have additional reports or

information related to Mr. Alton or other information they wish to share with the School. We encourage

you, our parent community, to do the same, and to reach out to our counselors or me with any information

you wish to share.


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News of this nature can be difficult for adults to process and is even harder for children to understand. On

the Basking Ridge Campus we will hold an all-school meeting on Tuesday, March 29 at which we will

share the broad outline of what is contained in this letter with the students. We do not plan to address the

Lower School students about this situation in a group setting, but the topics of health and safety are part

of the discussions at Morning Meeting and in Decisions classes throughout the year. If you are lookingfor guidance on speaking with your children about sexual abuse, we encourage you to refer to the

resources listed below. Our school counselors are also available to assist with these discussions, and their

contact information is provided below.

We value the confidence that you place in us by entrusting your children to our care, and we appreciate

your continuing partnership.

Sincerely,

Nathaniel E. Conard P ‘09, ’11 Jeffrey N. Edwards ’78, P ’12, ’14, ’18

Headmaster Chair of the Board of Trustees

Counselor Contact Information:

Dr. Mikaela Kilker 908-647-5555 ext. 1378 [email protected]

Dr. Perry Bell 908-647-5555 ext. 1375 [email protected]

Dr. Alyssa Johns 908-647-5555 ext. 1371 [email protected]

Julie Perlow, LCSW 973-379-4550 ext. 1417 [email protected]

T&M Protection Resources Contact Information:

Laura Kirschstein 212-916-8852 [email protected]

Additional Resources:

KidsHealth.org - How to Handle Abuse

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March 28, 2016

Dear Pingry Alumni,

We are writing to you today with distressing news concerning our past that we feel is important to share with you.We recently learned from a few of our alumni that students were sexually abused by Thad Alton, an employee of

Short Hills Country Day School from 1972 to 1974 and, following the merger of the two institutions, an employee

of The Pingry School from 1974 to 1978.

After leaving Pingry, Mr. Alton eventually moved to upstate New York and, by 1981, was working at a university

there. In 1990, he was convicted in New York State of two counts of sexual abuse of minors. Mr. Alton was

incarcerated until 1995. Currently, he is listed on the New York State Sex Offender Registry with an address in

Manhattan.

We want to assure you that we are taking this matter very seriously. We have contacted local law enforcement,

informed them of the allegations, and are committed to assisting them in their investigation.

While these events took place many years ago, we realize that they continue to cause pain for members of our

community. It is sickening that an educator, entrusted with the responsibility of protecting children, would cause

such suffering. Behavior of this nature is appalling and deplorable.

The safety and well-being of our students are our highest priorities. On a regular basis, Pingry undertakes a

review of its policies and procedures to ensure safeguards are built in to the School’s operating procedures. In

addition to conducting a thorough vetting process prior to hiring an employee, we vet members of the community

and other visitors to the School prior to allowing them access to our buildings. Our faculty and staff receive

professional development that emphasizes student safety, maintaining appropriate boundaries, reporting

requirements, and vigilance for the detection of inappropriate behavior. Our students receive education and

guidance about appropriate, healthy relationships, both with peers and with adults, through our health curriculum,

advisory system, and peer leadership program. Our counseling staff on both campuses is closely involved in these

efforts and in creating an environment in which students feel empowered to voice any concerns that they may

have.

We are committed to supporting those in our community who have been subject to this unconscionable

behavior. The Board of Trustees has approved the engagement of T&M Protection Resources, a highly

qualified, professional firm with significant experience in matters similar to this, to conduct a thorough,

independent investigation into the events of the 1970s. Once the investigation is complete, we will

provide a further update to the community.

If you have been affected personally, or know anyone who might have been harmed by Mr. Alton, weencourage you to contact us. We would welcome your phone call, email, or visit. Please reach out to Nat

Conard by phone 908-647-5555 x1232 or email [email protected], or contact Laura Kirschstein of

T&M Protection Resources at 212-916-8852 or [email protected] . We will make every

effort to ensure the confidentiality of any information we receive.


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We are both deeply pained by and sorry for the harm caused by Mr. Alton, and we wish to be as helpful to and

supportive of his victims as we can be.

Sincerely,

Nathaniel E. Conard, P ’09, ’11 Jeffrey N. Edwards, ’78, P ’12, ’14, ’18

Headmaster Chair of the Board of Trustees

pingry school letters to parents, alumni

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