Loudoun schools should have prevented sexual assault, grand jury report finds

Just one day after a grand jury found the Loudoun County school district to bear “the brunt of the blame” in the sexual assault of a high school student last year, Loudoun County Superintendent Scott Ziegler was fired Tuesday night, according to WJLA sources.

Ziegler was reportedly fired Tuesday night in a closed-door meeting after a number of parents complained about his performance to the school board. Loudoun County parents told WJLA they were “alarmed about how Ziegler and school administrators handled two sexual assaults that happened at two different schools last year.”

A special grand jury investigation report released Monday, Dec. 5 accused school leaders of practicing “intentional institutional amnesia” and perpetuating a “culture of fear” to prevent key details from becoming public. It also said officials “failed at every juncture” to prevent the situation from escalating.

The grand jury claimed Ziegler lied during a June 2021 school board meeting when he said he didn’t know about any record of assaults that had occurred in the school’s restrooms. The jury cited internal emails that suggested otherwise.

“We believe that throughout this ordeal LCPS administrators were looking out for their own interests instead of the best interest of LCPS. This invariably led to a stunning lack of openness, transparency, and accountability,” the report stated.

https://www.wric.com/news/virginia-news/loudoun-schools-should-have-prevented-sexual-assault-grand-jury-report-finds/