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Prosecutors say the former Head of School received “numerous reports” about Matthew Rutledge’s alleged inappropriate conduct with students.
Melissa Fares, 32, and Hilary Simon, 37, say they were preyed upon by history teacher Matthew Rutledge when they were students at Miss Hall’s School in Pittsfield. Jennifer S. Altman for The Boston Globe
The former headmaster of a private Pittsfield girls high school was indicted on a criminal charge Wednesday for allegedly failing to protect students from a teacher accused of grooming and raping them despite years of warnings about his conduct, authorities said.
Jeannie Norris, who served as Head of School at Miss Hall’s School from 1996 to 2012, is charged in Berkshire Superior Court with one count of reckless endangerment of a child, the Berkshire District Attorney’s Office announced in a press release.
Prosecutors allege Norris was aware that longtime teacher Matthew Rutledge was engaging in inappropriate relationships with students.
The charge marks the latest development in the scandal around Rutledge, who taught at Miss Hall’s from 1991 until resigning in 2024.
Rutledge faces three counts of rape stemming from allegations by two former students. Prosecutors allege he sexually assaulted the women while they attended the school nearly two decades ago. He has pleaded not guilty.
Evidence gathered during the investigation into Rutledge’s alleged abuse showed Norris received “numerous reports” about his alleged inappropriate conduct with students during her tenure leading the school, the DA’s office said.
An attorney for Norris did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday evening.
The indicment comes months after an independent investigation commissioned by Miss Hall’s concluded school leaders repeatedly failed to protect students from Rutledge over decades.
The 60-page report linked Rutledge to five firsthand accounts of alleged sexual misconduct involving students or recent graduates and documented allegations of grooming, sexual advances, and “forcible oral and vaginal intercourse.”
A “considerable portion” of the information provided during investigation occurred while Norris was Head of School, the report said.
Investigators found that Rutledge cultivated close relationships with senior school leaders, including Norris, that allowed his conduct to go “unchecked,” the report states.
Among the incidents detailed in the report was one involving a senior student in the 1990s who told classmates that Rutledge was “having sex” with international students. The senior was suspended for the remainder of the school year, prohibited from attending graduation, and required to write an “apology” letter to Rutledge for the comment.
School officials then convened an all-school meeting where students were told “not to gossip” about the situation or there would be “disciplinary action,” per the report.
Investigators also described a complaint from the parent of a recent graduate, who wrote to Norris that Rutledge had engaged in “unmistakably inappropriate” behavior when he “attempted to kiss and professed his love” for the graduate, according to the report.
Norris consulted an attorney for this incident. Then-administrator Jenny Chandler and Norris subsequently instructed Rutledge to stop engaging in inappropriate behavior with students and alumni, which they said was a “pattern” for him, according to the report.
Miss Hall’s declined to comment Wednesday evening.
Berkshire District Attorney Timothy Shugrue said his team of prosecutors, including Massachusetts State Police detectives and victim witness advocates, are continuing to investigate the case.
“Today’s indictment is a result of the continued, active investigation into the allegations of abuse that occurred at Miss Hall’s School … I encourage anyone with information about potential abuse that occurred at Miss Hall’s School to please contact our State Police Detectives,” Shugrue said in the release.
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