School District Shirks Its Duty

Wed., March 19, 1997

By D.F. Oliveria daveo@spokesman.com (509) 319-0354

Who’s the Coeur d’Alene School District trying to kid?

On Monday, school officials reluctantly released the terms of a $47,000 buyout agreement with former instructor Paul Mather.

Superintendent Doug Cresswell claimed the Coeur d’Alene School Board accepted the settlement to save money and to protect the five girls who had brought sexual assault charges against Mather. But a father of one of the young teenagers doesn’t accept that explanation. Nor do we.

“It doesn’t strike me as any real break for the girls,” the father said. “The tough part for them was to come forward in the first place. … I think the school board should have as much courage as the kids did to do the right thing.”

School trustees and officials, pressured by their insurance company, shirked their duty by passing this matter on to the state’s Professional Standards Commission for resolution. By that act of expedience, the district denied the alleged victims and the community a chance to put this scandal behind them and begin healing.

Mather, on the other hand, kept his teaching certificate and now has two decisions to bolster his claims of innocence: the school board’s capitulation and a 1st District Court jury acquittal on sex-abuse charges. The jury that found Mather innocent believed student claims that he’d touched their breasts and buttocks but felt the girls had made no attempt to stop him.

Mather has led a charmed life as a teacher - thanks to help from superiors and colleagues.

In 1989, he admitted having sex with a 16-year-old from a nearby town he’d met while attending an alcohol rehabilitation program. The school district allowed him to continue teaching after the girl and her parents decided not to press charges. Four years later, he was warned not to touch students after one complained about him.

The district’s wink-and-nod approach to Mather continued last spring when it decided to wait for a court trial rather than conduct a dismissal hearing after the latest allegations had surfaced. The burden of proof to dismiss a teacher is lower than the one a jury faces in convicting him.

If the finicky district had acted promptly and firmly, it would have served notice that it takes abuse complaints against teachers seriously - and possibly saved a year’s worth of salary.

Instead, the Coeur d’Alene School District has shown it considers the rights of adults more important than those of students.

, DataTimes The following fields overflowed: CREDIT = D.F. Oliveria/For the editorial board

Local journalism is essential.

Give directly to The Spokesman-Review's Northwest Passages community forums series -- which helps to offset the costs of several reporter and editor positions at the newspaper -- by using the easy options below. Gifts processed in this system are tax deductible.

Meet Our Journalists

Jesse Tinsley

Meet Jesse Tinsley. As a certified drone pilot, this veteran Spokesman-Review photographer often can be seen capturing beautiful aerial photographs of our region. Sometimes though, the job requires getting down with the dogs.
Jim Meehan

Jim Meehan is no stranger to Zag Nation. As the lead writer covering the Gonzaga men’s basketball team, he tells the stories behind the game and gets fans a bit closer to their favorite players.
Molly Quinn

There is no artist in Spokane like Molly Quinn. Her whimsical style is instantly recognizable to readers of The Spokesman-Review. She has painted gorgeous illustrations that instantly elevate the journalism accompanying it. She brings to life the stories that defy photography. She makes our pages better.
Rob Curley

Spokesman-Review editor Rob Curley loves to talk with people and learn about their lives, whether it's a best-selling author or a stranger he meets downtown on his walk to lunch. It's that inquisitive nature combined with a playful sense of storytelling that helps make our newspaper different than most.