Bruce Barrett, a former art teacher at Knox Grammar School in Wahroonga, Sydney, has received a memorial which reads, “He Touched Us All.” It would be very sweet, except Barrett was a convicted child molester.
While Barrett was teaching at Knox Grammar School, he was accused of molesting students and other bizarre behavior. In 2009, he was convicted of five counts of indecent assault and two accounts of sexual assault. One of his former students, Scott Ashton, claimed that Barrett liked tickling students during class and paying students for sex.
“The fact that he was so well regarded by the school despite being a notorious molester made me feel very confused and powerless,” said Mr Ashton.
“I felt ashamed of my abuse. I was deeply ashamed and unable to discuss it with anyone.
“It was an issue which I avoided because any reminder of it would cause me severe stress and interfered with my ability to function and cope on a day-to-day basis.”
To make matters worst, students had to attend Barrett’s funeral, and Barrett was hardly an anomaly at Knox Grammar School. There are pending allegations against three other staff members, and five former teachers have been convicted of sexual assault.
In summary, Knox Grammar School has much bigger problems than the wording on an ill-conceived teacher memorial. “He Touched Us All” was the worst possible phrasing, though. Really, really poor phrasing.
Source: Independent News