RSU21 Superintendent of Schools Dr. Kathryn Hawes issued this following statement after Thursday’s verdict.
As many of you may know, former Kennebunk High School teacher Jill Lamontagne was acquitted by a jury of all criminal charges brought against her. The District respects the judgment of the jury and we commend the administrators, teachers and students who performed an important civic duty by responding to subpoenas from both sides and coming to court to testify. We are glad that this long and difficult process is now over.
Although Ms. Lamontagne was acquitted of the criminal charges, I think it is important to acknowledge that the evidence that was presented during the trial demonstrated a troubling failure by one of our teachers to comply with the standards we expect of all of our employees. For example, RSU 21 prohibits our employees from communicating with students by text and social media platforms, we require our teachers to refer students in crisis to professional counselors rather than attempting to intervene with these students on their own, and we would never condone the use of intimate language, of the type introduced during the trial, between our teachers and their students.
We have a staff of committed, caring and gifted teachers in RSU 21 and I want to assure all of you that we remain committed to the growth, safety and well-being of all of our students. If your child needs to speak to one of our school counselors please contact the KHS main office at 985-1110.
Dr. Kathryn Hawes Superintendent of Schools
