Message to Parents, March 31, 2014

Welcome back from what I hope was a restful spring break. I would like to share an update about the legal proceedings with Dr. Wheeler. Over the break, there was a story in the press involving the criminal case against Dr. Wheeler. Among other things, it was reported that the trial has been set for May 2. We believed this was an error and contacted the authorities, which confirmed that the trial is scheduled for May 20, as we had shared with you earlier in the month.

 

However, following the recent news story, we learned from the authorities that a motion to suppress evidence, filed by Dr. Wheeler’s defense attorney, is scheduled for a hearing on Friday, April 4. Dr. Wheeler will appear in court, and we anticipate this will generate more media coverage. The court’s ruling on this motion could have a significant impact on the state’s case against Dr. Wheeler. It is also possible that a plea agreement could be reached following the hearing. Given the importance of the hearing, we will monitor this proceeding very closely and advise you immediately as to the status of the case.

 

In our last letter, we announced that Kroll Advisory Solutions had been retained to conduct our independent investigation. We indicated that this will involve not only the hiring of Dr. Wheeler and his tenure at Tower Hill, but also a comprehensive review of our past and current practices. This very extensive investigation is proceeding in a methodical and thorough manner. While we had anticipated a report of findings and recommendations by mid-May, this investigation cannot be completed until sometime after the state’s case against Dr. Wheeler has been resolved.

 

We had also discussed improved and increased campus security, and the comprehensive inspection of our campus last month by Remlu, Inc., our security consultant. We anticipate receiving a report from Remlu within the next few weeks, after which we will work with the consultant on finalizing and implementing additional security recommendations.

 

We do want to assure you that our primary focus is to continue to provide an excellent environment for your children. While we cannot ignore the court proceedings and the investigation, our goal is to ensure that the events have minimal impact on the day-to-day experience of your children. Instead, we have worked very hard to make sure that the students have as normal an experience as possible, and we will continue to do so.

 

Sincerely,

Harry Baetjer

Head of School