Inappropriate Relationship Between Kelly Benadi and Stephen Walker, Suffern Central School District Staff, Cited for Unresolved Bullying Incidents | Suffern Central School District Watchdog

SUFFERN, N.Y. (Oct. 25) — It’s been 13 days since a bullied fifth-grade student at R.P. Connor Elementary has attended classes and his parents say the schools lack of action is the result of an improper relationship between Suffern Central School District Deputy Superintendent Stephen Walker and his subordinate, school Principal Kelly Dowd (aka Kelly Benadi). Apparently, Kelly Dowd changed he name to Kelly Benadi after these reports surfaced and became public.

“Our son was told he should commit suicide by several classmates, who went as far as telling him how to do it to make sure he would end up dead,” said the boy’s father, who asked to remain anonymous. “Obviously, it’s one of the most horrifying things we could have ever imaged.” But the real exasperation has been the school district’s reaction, beginning with the incident itself, which was relayed to us by our son, not the school’s staff.

“He reported the incident to staff, but Principal Kelly Dowd ( Kelly Benadi-Dowd) never made a phone call, instead we learned all this through a phone call from our son.”

“We then asked if a DASA (Dignity for All Students) form was completed, which is required by the state, and were told the problem was fully resolved. How was this fully resolved without the Principal speaking to my child or my family?”

Suffern Central School District Lack of Response

In an effort to refute Principal Kelly Dowd’s (aka Kelly Benadi) actions, the father addressed the school board and superintendent on multiple occasions to inquire about the school’s reaction to the incident, however the family has received no response to date. The parents previously sought assistance from Principal Dowd’s immediate supervisor, District Deputy Superintendent Stephen A Walker, who also refused to address the situation.

SCSD School Board Notified of Improper Relationship of Stephen Walker and Kelly Benadi

When video evidence surfaced that Deputy Superintendent Walker was having a sexual relationship with his subordinate, Principal Dowd (aka Kelly Benadi), the parents notified school board members. This time they heard back from the school district’s legal counsel who stated, “the alleged improper relationship between the (Deputy) Superintendent and the other administrator is simply incorrect.” The parents insist the legal counsel made his conclusion without viewing the video evidence, even though it was shown to members of the school board in the days prior to his response. They were led to believe that Title IX didn’t exist in the school district and that sexual relationships between top administrators were acceptable.

“It makes me think that the district administrators are looking to sweep this under the rug,” the child’s father said. “I would have to think that the Teachers Union would not look favorably on this”.

While the parents continue to look for answers, the child has been under the care of the family’s pediatrician, who insists the school district creates a safety plan, per Suffern Central School District Policy 0115, before he would be cleared to return to school.

Suffern 10 Year Old Student Denied While Caught Up In Suffern School’s Inaction

“Principal Dowd told us our son needs to be cleared by the doctor before they will start to create a safety plan,” the father said. “It’s just one obstacle after another. It’s so hurtful and sad because we rely on these educators to protect our children and all they seem to be doing is putting us off. All of this has resulted in my child being deprived of his lawful education.”

The child’s doctors gave a return date and the officials continued to say that the child needed to be cleared. “It is like a dog chasing its tail with these people.”

Principal Kelly Dowd (aka Kelly Benadi)- R.P. Connor Elementary School

Principal Kelly Dowd, a former East Ramapo School District Administrator, was hired in 2016 to replace a retiring principal. She is listed as the school’s DASA Coordinator, while Walker is the District’s DASA Coordinator.

To date, the child endured several instances of physical, mental and verbal abuse spanning Dowd’s entire tenure at the school.

“We’ve documented more than 100 emails between Ms. Dowd, Mr. Walker, staff and the board and received superficial replies or no response,” the father said. “We even reached out to Suffern Central School District Superintendent Dr. Douglas Adams, who simply replied that “if you have a concern, complaint, or compliment, I encourage you to share with the people closest to the aforementioned.”

Parent Locked Out Of The Suffern Central School District Administrative Offices While Submitting a Freedom of Information Letter

Last year, the parents attempted to submit FOIL (Freedom of Information Letters) to the school district in regard to incidents that concerned their child. In those letters, the parents stated they were locked out of the administration building for more than an hour and a half by Walker after he realized the FOILs were regarding Dowd. This was reported to the Committee on Open Government, which concluded the school acted improperly, further stating they have never seen anything like this before.

The FOIL requests, once filed, brought more concerns. There was an email thread where the parents emailed Dowd, who forwarded the message to Walker asking if she should be worried. Walker assured her she should not be worried. The FOILs also showed how Dowd would tell teachers not to respond to the parent’s emails.

Deputy Superintendent Stephen A Walker — Suffern Central School District

After further investigation, submitted videos and photographs revealed that on three separate occasions Walker spent the night with Dowd at the principal’s residence in Mahwah, New Jersey. The three overnight stays, documented, occurred within a two-week period and all happened during the work week.

On one occasion, Stephen Walker called in sick from attending the Suffern Central School Board meeting, where they were voting on his contract extension and a raise, where his salary was improved to $192,132 a year, part of his $30,000 increase.

The significance of Walker spending the evening and leaving Principal Dowd’s residence in the morning on three occasions is that these actions are the exact burden of proof the Suffern Central School District uses in order to prove the residence of a student suspected to live outside the school district. The school district hires private investigators to document if a suspected student enters a residence in the evening and then leaves the next morning. After three times, they consider the address as their residence. According to burden of proof the Suffern School Central District uses to prove residency, they would have to accept that Walker is residing with Dowd, his subordinate.

“For a Deputy Superintendent to be involved with a principal that is his direct subordinate and one he pushed to have hired is appalling,” said the child’s father. “To think that my child has been mistreated and it not to be addressed because these two are in a personal relationship is inexcusable and indefensible.”

Stephen Walker Leaves To Go To Sullivan West Central School District

Soon after Stephen Walker left the Suffern Central School District to go to Sullivan West Central School District. After being a no show at Board Meetings for months, Walker decided it was time for quits. Many in the district don’t believe that it was Walker’s decision, they believe that he was forced out.

Walker came from Marlboro School District and a party wishing to remain anonymous stated that they believe that Walker had similar issues in Marlboro having a relationship with a subordinate.

The Story Continues

The family’s attorney was able to have the child placed in a different school for his protection. The child will resume classes shortly.

Originally published at https://www.sufferncentralschoolswatchdog.com on November 6, 2017.