Sexual harassment allegations filed against New York district board member, multiple news outlets confirm 

New York’s Buffalo Public Schools is doing damage control after multiple allegations of sexual harassment were filed against a board member, according to recent reports.

“Two members of the board are named in the complaint, but initial information that was shared with the board does not name who the members are or detail the allegations itself,” noted WGRZ-TV.

“Right now, it is unclear who is reviewing the allegations, since corporation counsel for the district has recused themselves from the matter.”

A special board session to discuss the allegations had been set for June 12, but it was abruptly canceled, according to the news outlet.

“Board leadership says they withheld sharing the sexual harassment allegations with the board in order to prevent the allegations being made public.”

Audacy’s WBEN news show explained the meeting was canceled “because of a lack of quorum.”

“Sources say some board members feel they’re hitting a wall and this issue may not be adequately addressed at this coming Wednesday’s board meeting,” Tom Puckett wrote for WBEN.

A regularly scheduled board meeting is set for Tuesday.

The initial complaint to board leadership occurred on June 2, with Board President Dr. Kathy Evans-Brown notifying the rest of the board concerning the allegations June 4, WGRZ reported.

District criticized for ‘lack of transparency’ 

The district, which enrolled approximately 27,800 students in the 2024-25 academic year, has drawn criticism over the way it has handled previous incidents of abuse and sexual assault.

Detective Richard Hy, who has worked with the Buffalo Police Department and on its Special Victims Unit, berated school administrators on the Texas-based Unsubscribe Podcast in April 2025.

“The Buffalo school system has been intentionally not reporting the assaults of students, sexual assaults between students,” he said, “and then has also used the Buffalo Police Department school resource officers to write reports and then had their influence over those officers.”

Despite the district’s calling Hy’s allegations “unfortunate and untrue,” the detective stood by his public comments.

“[There] is definitely a chance, but it’s the right thing to do,” he said. “I’ve gotten a lot of calls and text messages from different people … different ranks in the Buffalo Police Department, outside the Buffalo Police Department … in local and national politics that are saying that they support me in my decision and that it’s kind of hard to wag your finger at somebody who’s calling out somebody for not protecting children.”

Other community activists, including parent advocate Edward Speidel, have echoed Hy’s concerns regarding the district.

“I know of a mom who reported her young child was assaulted by a substitute teacher and the district will not give the teacher’s name, so that the mom can press charges,” Speidel said. “It’s disturbing, the lack of transparency that comes out of Buffalo Public Schools.”

(Image credit: Photo by Pavol Svantner on Unsplash)