Honors English Teacher Placed on Extended Leave Just Days Into New School Year at Bridgehampton

Just one week into the new school year, the Bridgehampton School District announced to parents that it had put a tenured English teacher on an extended leave of absence, with pay, leaving several parents upset and frustrated and demanding more answers from the administration.

In a letter sent to parents after school hours on Monday, September 9, Principal Michael Cox said that Tom House, who teaches several English classes to both middle school and high school students, including AP Literature and Composition, will be on an extended leave due to “unforseen circumstances,” and that starting on September 11, all his classes would be “transitioned to certified English teachers on staff” while the school conducts a search for a long-term leave replacement.

“Our teachers are fully prepared to take on this responsibility,” the letter, which The Express obtained a copy of, continued, “and we are confident that they will provide the rigorous and enriching academic environment that your children deserve.”

Bridgehampton School Superintendent Dr. Mary T. Kelly confirmed on Tuesday morning that House has been placed on an extended leave of absence but declined to provide any more details about why, or how long the leave of absence will be. She also declined to say whether he would return to the classroom at any point during the current school year.

“I can’t discuss matters of personnel,” she said. “There are many reasons why teachers go on leaves of absence, and I don’t think anybody should jump to any conclusions. It’s our responsibility to make sure the students are receiving a proper education, and that’s what we’re doing.”

House, who resides in Springs, is in his 15th year as a teacher at Bridgehampton, and is also well-known in the local community as the founder and president of Hamptons Pride, the first-ever East End organization devoted exclusively to LGBTQ+ pride. He is also the founder of the Hamptons Pride Parade, which had its inaugural year in 2022. With the blessing of Dr. Kelly, House created the Gender and Sexualities Alliance at the school, and has served as the club’s advisor.

In the aftermath of the move, several parents of current and former students who have or had House as a teacher expressed their shock at the move and dissatisfaction with the school district’s handling of the situation.

Erica Lynn Huberty’s daughter, Bebe, is a senior at Bridgehampton and a student in House’s AP class. Like the rest of her classmates, she completed the summer reading assigned by House — “The Great Gatsby” and “Great Expectations” — and was prepared to take a test on Monday that was assigned based off that reading. That test never happened, and now Huberty and other parents are left wondering what English class will look like for their children this year.

“I am shocked,” Huberty said of the decision to place House on leave. “I am completely suspicious as to the reasons why he, of all people, would be let go. He’s widely known for being a kind, empathetic teacher that most kids like, and he’s a really good English teacher.”

Huberty said she’s seen “a suspicious amount of things” focused on him, both in her interactions with him as a teacher of her children and in her capacity as a member of Hamptons Pride.

“The way this all went down and the way they put it in the parent letter is painting a picture that is going to give rise to really defamatory harmful rumors for somebody who has been a really great member of the community,” she said. “I’m concerned about the school and the school’s image, because I love this school.”

Elizabeth Cassone also spoke in defense of House. Her daughter, Olivia, graduated from Bridgehampton and is now a graduate student at Cal Berkeley. She spoke about the impact House had on her daughter. She described Olivia as a student who was always more geared toward math, but found an appreciation for literature and language thanks to House.

“Mr. House was a phenomenal teacher,” Elizabeth Cassone said. “We became friendly with him because he was such a good man and a good teacher.”

Cassone described her reaction when she heard the news that he had been placed on an extended leave.

“I felt like, something sounds wrong,” she said. “Something does not sound right. This teacher is such a wonderful teacher and a good human being and member of our community. It sounds like somebody has it out for him. He’s too good of a man.”

When reached for comment earlier this week, House had this to say:

“I need more time before I can relay the full story of my reassignments. But right now my heart goes out to the parents of my students at Bridgehampton School who are concerned about the education their children will receive, and about why I am suddenly not there to continue it, when I have held this position for 15 years. These years predate by over a decade the tenure of the present administration who sent me home on Monday morning.

“I’ve been asked if these reassignments are connected to my role as president and founding director of the local nonprofit Hamptons Pride, which organizes the Pride Parade in East Hampton Village on the first Saturday of June,” he continued. “Or if they may be connected to the fact that I am the only out LGBTQ+ teacher at the school. A number of Bridgehampton students, faculty, and parents have participated in the parade every year, so the school and Hamptons Pride are, of course, connected in that respect. But I don’t yet know the answer to those larger questions.

I am grateful for the many messages of support I’m receiving from members of the community, and especially from past students,” he added. “Their memories of how I’ve served as a mentor to them and helped them to succeed over the years, both personally and professionally, are a silver lining in this ordeal.”

House has been placed on a leave of absence before. He was placed on leave in early June, at the end of the last school year, but was cleared over the summer to return to the classroom for this current school year. The final two months of last school year were challenging for him, as he was dealing with the unexpected death of his brother in May.

While Kelly did not elaborate on why House was placed on leave, she strongly denied that it had anything to do with his community activism through Hamptons Pride.

“I have been very supportive of Tom and his work with Hamptons Pride,” she said, referring to Pride events held on campus and organized by House. “Tom came to me very early in my superintendency to ask about starting a Gender and Sexualities Alliance Club, and we got that off the ground. [His leave of absence] has nothing to do with that. I think the record is clear about that.”