School principal found guilty of professional misconduct for sexually harassing student teacher

Seán McCárthaigh

A school principal who sexually harassed a student teacher at his school in the west of Ireland eight years ago has been struck off the Register of Teachers after being found guilty of professional misconduct at a fitness-to-teach inquiry.

An inquiry panel of the Teaching Council also ruled that he cannot reapply to have his name restored to the register for at least 15 years after finding a series of allegations of inappropriate conduct by the principal towards the young female teacher proven.

In an email to the regulatory body last July in response to the inquiry’s findings, the principal claimed there was “not much left for the Teaching Council to take from me.”

The married father of adult children, who cannot be identified as a result of a ruling by the panel, added: “I used to think I was a good man, husband, father and member of the teaching profession. I’m now a pariah and treated as if I had committed a murder. I’ve lost the life I used to have.”

The three-person panel found five allegations of professional misconduct proven beyond a reasonable doubt, including that the principal had sought to use his position to pursue an inappropriate, sexual relationship with the teacher.

At a sanction hearing on Thursday, the panel was informed that the principal had suffered significant financial penalties as a result of his decision to take retirement earlier than he had intended last May.

In an email, he claimed he was now receiving one-fifth of his former salary, which equated to the loss of “a six-figure sum” to his pension.

“The financial penalty for the remainder of my life, whatever its duration, will be profound,” he remarked.

Other findings against the principal included that he had locked the student teacher in the school on April 20th, 2017, after all the students had left and tried to persuade her to have a relationship with him that he pointed out would be beneficial for her career.

The inquiry heard evidence that the principal had told her that there would be opportunities if she was “willing to treat him well” after declaring that he liked her.

The principal suggested during the same incident that they should book a hotel room in Dublin in order to get to know each other as well as go to theatres and operas together.

The panel also concluded that he had placed his hand inside the teacher’s jacket and touched and rubbed her back and waist during a variety show in the school on March 24th, 2017, which was also attended by his wife and teenage daughter.

The principal sent the teacher a text message a few hours later at 1.40am, which read: “Night, night [her name]. Delighted you could share our special occasion. Take care. [His name].”

The panel ruled that the teacher had also committed various breaches of the Code of Professional Conduct for Teachers over his failure to maintain professional boundaries.

The inquiry heard the woman, who is now a fully qualified teacher in her 30s, only felt able to come forward to make a complaint about the principal in 2022.

The panel said she was “credible and consistent” during her appearance before a two-day inquiry last March, while it observed that her demeanour was “impressive” and her testimony was “compelling.”

The principal, who denied all allegations of professional misconduct but accepted some facts in written correspondence to the Teaching Council, did not attend and was not legally represented at the opening day of the inquiry.

However, he unexpectedly appeared before the hearing on the following day after details of the case were widely reported in the media.

The principal claimed he was “stunned” by the teacher’s evidence and felt his personal and professional life were being “eviscerated and annihilated.”

He told the inquiry that he was fighting for his livelihood and claimed his accuser’s testimony was “fantasy.”

The principal claimed he was being targeted as a middle-aged man and that the teacher’s allegations had “everything but race” in them.

However, the panel found that he was “not a convincing witness”, despite his effective and efficient role in the school over many years.

In a number of e-mails to the Teaching Council in recent months, the principal complained that the inquiry panel had made judgements on him based on “inaccurate” evidence, while he had never posed a risk to anyone during his career.

If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, you can call the national 24-hour Rape Crisis Helpline at 1800-77 8888, access text service and webchat options at drcc.ie/services/helpline/ or visit Rape Crisis Help.