Riverhead school superintendent, administrator disciplined in separate incidents

Two Riverhead Central School District administrators — Superintendent Augustine Tornatore and Lori Koerner, assistant superintendent for human resources and elementary education — are no longer working on school grounds after their involvement in two separate altercations. The disciplinary actions are the latest in a series of incidents involving violence, racial tensions, safety and discord in the district.

A source close to the school administration confirmed Mr. Tornatore was put on leave after “verbally berating” a Riverhead Central Faculty Association official on Oct. 5, which resulted in that person being rushed to the hospital.

Mr. Tornatore’s leave of absence was imposed by the Board of Education at a hastily-called special meeting on that same day. He will remain on leave through Oct. 23. William Galati, the district’s executive director for secondary education, grants and student outcomes, is currently serving as the interim superintendent. 

The second incident involved Rodney Parrish, secretary to the superintendent, who called the Riverhead Police Department from the school district office on Sept. 22, accusing Ms. Koerner of harassment, according to a police report. 

Since that incident, Ms. Koerner has been reassigned to work remotely. School board president Colin Palmer declined to comment on the harassment report. 

The Board of Education appointed the Law Office of Joady Benjamin Feiner to conduct an independent investigation of one of the allegations against a district employee. Mr. Tornatore signed the contract with Ms. Benjamin Feiner’s office on Sept. 26 and she will be paid an hourly fee of $220 for her services. Elena Cacavas of the firm  Cacavas ADR, LLC will look into allegations related to another incident. Her office will receive an hourly fee of $300.

The contract with Ms. Cacavas’ office was not signed by anyone in the district, but the school board voted to approve retaining her services.

The board declined to confirm if the incidents being investigated involve Mr. Tornatore and Ms. Koerner. 

The Board of Education held its regularly scheduled meeting Tuesday night in a crowded Charles Cardona auditorium at the high school, where community members raised multiple  concerns. 

Christopher Dorr, a recently retired school board member, questioned the hiring of a special legal counsel. He asked if the district can provide a timeline for the investigations. 

Eric Levine of Guercio and Guercio Law Offices, which represents the school district, replied that the investigation will take as long as it needs to take.

“The directives from the board are to do it as expeditiously, but as thoroughly, as possible,” Mr. Levine said.

Michael Carver, a Riverhead High School parent, said the board needs to give Mr. Galati all the necessary resources to help him execute the job, instead of focusing on hiring a new superintendent.

“I think part of the reason we don’t have solutions is because we haven’t had consistency or any kind of stability in our administrative office,” Mr. Carver said. “Don’t start spending money on searching to the outside to find somebody to be a temporary fix, you got a fix right here.”

Since the current school year began Sept. 5 , there have been several safety-related incidents at the high school. 

The first occurred Sept. 8, when one student assaulted another with pepper spray. Residue from the irritant  also compromised air quality in the hallway, affecting other students and security guards. Those impacted required medical treatment.

The second incident occurred at a Sept. 9 football game, where four cousins between the ages of 5 and 7 were called a racial slur by a high school and a middle school student and a third, out-of-district student.

Robert Brown, great-grandfather of the four Black children, also addressed the board Tuesday night.

He said he has worked with the school district since 2007 to schedule minority speakers from a variety of professions to inspire students and discuss different career paths available to them. 

By this time in the school year, Mr. Brown said, he and Dr. Koerner would normally have created a schedule of events and list of speakers, but he hasn’t been contacted. 

“This year, I have had nothing,” he  said. “Dr. Koerner was supposed to notify me last week about these events — I haven’t heard a word.” 

Mr. Brown previously raised the incident at the football game before the board at its Sept. 12 meeting. At a Town Anti-Bias Task Force meeting the following week, the organization discussed ways to support the district.

Town Police Chief David Hegermiller attended that meeting with other local officials and community members, including the mothers of the children involved, and said he planned to add two full-time school resource officers to the district, one at the middle school and one at the high school. It remains unclear if that has yet been accomplished. 

Also in September were reports of swastikas drawn on desks at the high school, which prompted Principal Sean O’Hara to reach out to the Holocaust Memorial and Tolerance Center for support.

Parents and students have been calling  for heightened security in the district for months. On March 28, days after previous board president Laurie Downs resigned after making  disparaging public remarks regarding  students of Hispanic heritage , a Riverhead High School student was assaulted, robbed and stabbed on his way home by five individuals in ski masks armed with a knife. 

Three days later, a 14-year-old student was arrested after bringing more than a dozen .22 caliber bullets to school, an incident that prompted a lockdown that some parents said had terrified their children. 

Then, on n April 12, 15-year-old RHS student Preston Gamble was shot at the Calverton Hills condominium complex and later transported by family members to Peconic Bay Medical Center in Riverhead, where he died. No arrests have been made and an investigation is ongoing.

Over the summer, the school installed 125 new surveillance cameras and updated security software. Other security measures the school has undertaken include access control devices at targeted entrances and exits throughout the district, as well as door sensors to prevent unauthorized building entrances and exits.

The next Board of Education meeting is scheduled for Oct. 24 at 7 p.m. 

with Tim Gannon