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A school district in Connecticut is launching an investigation after an assistant principal who has now been placed on administrative leave allegedly made statements caught on video regarding hiring practices that included not employing conservatives, Catholics, older applicants, and those not progressive.
The incident in Fairfield County has caused a firestorm among the Greenwich School District and has city officials also calling for a full investigation.
The video featuring Cos Cob Elementary School Assistant Principal Jeremy Boland was posted online by the organization Project Veritas on Tuesday, Aug. 30.
The video shows Boland speaking to a woman in different locations making the statements. The video also appears to be heavily edited.
After the release of the 12-minute video, Greenwich First Selectman Fred Camillo also called for a full investigation.
"The Veritas video just released, and I see no reason to suspect it is not accurate, is shameful and needs a full investigation into not only this administrator but the damage caused to applicants, past and present," Camillo, a Republican, said in a Facebook statement. "Our kids deserve better. Our schools deserve better. Our town deserves better."
Greenwich Superintendent of Schools Dr. Toni Jones, who confirmed Bolland had been placed on administrative leave, sent an email to families and staff on Wednesday, Aug. 31 regarding the video:
"Late last evening, we were made aware of a video that had gone viral with a current administrator from Cos Cob School," Jones wrote. "We intend to do a full investigation and until that time, we will not make any public statements. We ask that you respect the investigation process during this time.
"We do not, however, support any opinions that promote discriminatory hiring practices based on race, religion, gender, or age in any way, and we want to remind our entire community that our curriculum policies and procedures are strictly enforced by our Board."
State law prohibits discriminatory hiring practices due to an individual’s race, color, religious creed, age, sex, gender identity or expression, marital status, national origin, ancestry, present or past history of mental disability, intellectual disability, learning disability, physical disability, including, but not limited to, blindness or status as a veteran.
This is a developing story. Check back to Daily Voice for updates.
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