On the evening of Oct. 28, Mercer Island School District Superintendent Fred Rundle notified the school community that the district placed a Mercer Island High School (MIHS) paraeducator on paid administrative leave that afternoon. In the letter, Rundle said that this occurred pending an investigation into concerns the staff member may have violated one or more district policies.

“To be clear, the District is NOT investigating any allegation of sexual misconduct or failure to report such conduct. This step is procedural and allows the District to review the matter thoroughly and fairly,” Rundle wrote. “The District is not releasing the employee’s name at this time because this remains an active personnel investigation, and the paraeducator’s identity has not been associated with concerns like the investigation into Mr. (Curtis) Johnston, which was and is part of active public discussion.”

Rundle said the district will keep the community apprised of the situation if they receive additional information and if it is appropriate to share.

“In the meantime, families and students determined to be directly relevant to the District’s investigation have been, or will be, informed of the staff member’s identity and pertinent details,” he wrote.

Rundle said he penned this letter following the community’s request for more transparency.

In addition to the superintendent addressing above why the name of this employee is being withheld, he discussed why the district named current MIHS teacher David Willecke in an Oct. 23 letter regarding Johnston’s investigation. Willecke was put on paid administrative leave pending an investigation into concerns that he may have failed to report information related to Johnston’s alleged inappropriate relationship with a student in the past, according to the Oct. 23 letter.

“The District released Mr. Willecke’s name because the District had determined that the staff member’s presence posed a disruption to the learning environment, and the individual’s name was already part of community discussion related to a published news story involving allegations of sexual misconduct and a potential failure to report,” Rundle wrote.