Schools
North Kingstown Superintendent Resigns Over 'Naked Fat Test' Investigation
Superintendent Phil Auger said he thought it was important for the school district to move ahead with a leader with no ties to Coach Thomas.
NORTH KINGSTOWN, RI — North Kingstown Superintendent Phil Auger said Wednesday he will resign ahead of the expected release of an investigation into the "naked fat test" scandal.
Former students say former North Kingstown High School basketball coach Aaron Thomas asked students to strip naked in his office for so-called "fat tests," and say he had been doing so since the 1990s. According to WPRI 12, which first reported this story, Auger kept Thomas on as a coach for more than two years after some students came forward.
Auger in his resignation letter said he thought it was important for the school district to move ahead with a leader with no ties to Thomas. Auger still denied he did anything wrong, saying he would have acted faster if he knew the extent of the allegations sooner, WPRI 12 reported.
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"Our school community is working through its investigation around allegations involving Mr. Thomas at NKHS, and I respect the importance to move forward with a new district leader who is in no way connected to these matters," Auger said in a statement. "For my response to Mr. Thomas, I remain steadfast in the knowledge that I acted appropriately and immediately in the best interests of students past and present, with the information I had at the time."
Attorney Timothy Conlon, who is representing former students who came forward, refuted Auger's claim that he didn't know about the allegations. Conlon said at least two students came forward in 2018, but Thomas wasn't up for termination until June 2021.
Find out what's happening in North Kingstownwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Thomas resigned in June 2021 before facing termination and has denied the allegations.
Auger's resignation comes before the release of the several investigations, including probes from the Rhode Island Attorney General's Office, the U.S. Attorney's Office and the North Kingstown School Committee. The school committee is expected to finalize its report this week.
Auger also faced pressure from North Kingstown parents to resign.
More on naked fat test story
- Student Says Ex-N. Kingstown Coach Molested Him During Fat Tests
- Ex-Judge To Review Naked 'Fat Test' Investigations Into Former Coach
- N. Kingstown Parents Urge Superintendent To Resign Over Fat Tests
- Naked 'Fat Tests' Were Legal, Says Ex-N. Kingstown Coach's Lawyer
- Ex-RI Teacher Fired From New Job Over Naked 'Fat Tests': Report
- N. Kingstown Schools Knew About Coach's Naked 'Fat Tests': Report
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