Amherst School Superintendent Silent On Forsten Curriculum Job

AMHERST, NH — The school superintendent for Amherst and Mont Vernon is refusing to discuss the nomination and withdrawal of the former Concord school superintendent who was fired late last year after a multi-month investigation into a teacher-student rape case. SAU 39 Superintendent Adam Steel said Thursday in an email that a rumor that Terri Forsten was hired by the district as a curriculum administrator was misinformation. But according to sources, school district employees were informed of her nomination for the job this week — with a meeting scheduled with staffers on Slack, an online instant messaging platform, to meet Forsten.

A few hours later, the meeting was canceled, Forsten's nomination rescinded, and the notifications deleted, according to screenshots and texts received by Patch.

Staffers were told the withdrawal was made after "further due diligence" and they were thanked for their "support during a difficult decision-making process."

On Friday, when asked for an updated comment about Forsten's potential hire, including text from one of the Slack messages, Steel refused to comment on the position.

"Our committee has interviewed several candidates and I have not selected who will be hired," he said. "I am not going to comment on any candidate who has applied and has not been selected, but I have not found anyone who meets my standards for competency, character, and integrity, and will continue our search until I find someone worthy of the students in my care."

Emails to SAU 39 school board members Friday about the nomination and withdrawal were not returned by post time.

Forsten was terminated on Sept. 25, 2019, and then, agreed to a settlement with the district to avoid arbitration and lawsuits on Nov. 1, 2019, after the Concord Board of Education spent two days eyeing a 100-plus page investigation into how and why a Concord High School special education teacher, Primo "Howie" Leung, was kept on as a teacher for many months after being accused of inappropriate contact with a student. Months after the inappropriate conduct allegation, while Leung was still teaching, he was arrested and accused of raping another girl at a summer school program in Massachusetts.

Forsten's brought the case to the attention of the New Hampshire Department of Education and that led to an expanded investigation of Leung by Concord police and his eventual arrest in Newton, Massachusetts, about a year ago.

But between the Leung arrest and Forsten's termination, administrators and the district were embattled and the community outraged and ripped apart due to what happened. Many other situations and incidents were revealed including at least one possible targeting of a girl by Leung dating back to 2011, a student who raised issues about Leung's behavior and was suspended by a school official for speaking out, and a number of employees who were not credentialed inside SAU 8, including the current assistant superintendent, Donna Palley. During the school community crisis, Forsten lashed out at the press and social media for offering "a dribble of articles and posts that have presented singular perspectives and have negatively impacted some of the community's viewpoint of our schools and work."

As part of her severance package, Forsten was given a letter of reference that could be used at future job interviews. Two weeks after school board members unsealed her termination, they clarified the letter of reference would only be confirmation of employment for the district. Forsten was paid for the remainder of her contract as well as vacation pay and a retirement stipend, about $110,000, and given 18 months of health care, or until she finds new employment, as part of the package.

Forsten was hired by SAU 8 in 2015 after working as a special education teacher at Rundlett Junior High School in the 1980s, a principal in Laconia, assistant superintendent, and superintendent in Laconia.

To view more than 40 stories about Howie Leung rape case and other stories that evolved from the investigation, view this link online.

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