Students and teachers are concerned as incidents of stolen or missing items increased in September and early October.
Dean of Students Paul Murray addressed the issue during the October 4 assembly for Judicial Board member elections.
“I would say there are people on campus that are not living up to our core values—and we would like that to stop,” Murray said.
This breach of the School’s core values comes on the heels of a racist Sept. 20 incident, where somebody wrote “Clean [N-word]” in one of the girls’ bathrooms.
Aniyah Lesse ’25 talked about how some of her money was stolen from the girls’ locker room in September.
“I felt very hurt and sad because I never thought something like this could happen in our environment. And at that time, I felt like it was my fault when it really wasn’t,” Lesse said.
The Athletics Department is also urging students to place valuables in secure gym lockers, according to Upper School Head Joshua Neudel.
“Unfortunately, we are a little limited on what we can do, as we don’t have the ability to police and investigate unless somebody can bring us some type of information where we can ask questions,” Neudel said.
Murray calls on anyone with information about missing or stolen items to promptly report to a trusted adult or faculty member. Accusations of theft will only be made with ironclad proof, he said.
“And because of that, our options are limited,” Murray said. “As far as options for investigation, we are not the police force, we are not the FBI. We are reliant on whatever information we can pull out of the community.”
Middle and Upper School Science teacher Nia Gipson also had some items taken from her desk.
“I had several different things stolen out of my closet and then off my teacher’s desk, some of which were in drawers that are on my desk,” Gipson said. “The thing that got me the most upset were the stickers because I like them, and I like putting them on kids’ papers and things like that.”
Gipson, a seasoned educator new to the community, expressed her appreciation for the open-door policy where teachers don’t lock their rooms, allowing students to utilize the space when it’s available.
“It was really disappointing to have that challenge really early on in the year,” Gipson said.
Last month, math teacher Peter Slaski also reported that his iPad charger had gone missing from his classroom.
“I would like to think that someone had the intention of borrowing item and just never returned,” Slaski said. “It’s just kind of a bummer because it’s just something that I need and use on a daily basis. I guess I was optimistic that it would be returned at some point, although this happened weeks ago and I’m becoming less optimistic.”
Editors’ note: If you misplace a belonging or wish to report theft, please contact Dean of Students Paul Murray or Upper School Head Joshua Neudel.
