A private K-12 school in Nashville is facing criticism from students, faculty, and parents over its response to accusations that the school’s former sponsor for a sexuality-focused club groomed a student last year.
In recent weeks, the University School of Nashville has faced calls for new leadership from parents, students, and alumni who say it improperly handled accusations that English teacher and Gender and Sexuality Alliance (GSA) club faculty sponsor Dean Masullo sexually harassed a student. Faculty at the school have also criticized the school’s response to the allegations, calling for more transparency.
The student, who graduated from USN in 2024, said that Masullo groomed her by isolating her physically and emotionally. She said that he attempted to escalate physical touch throughout her senior year after she turned 18. In an August letter to the school, a lawyer for the student wrote that Masullo “abused his position to touch her in a sexualized way,” giving several examples of inappropriate behavior toward her. The letter says that though she was sexually harassed, she “escaped without sexual abuse.”
The letter said there was a pattern of inappropriate behavior toward students who were a part of the GSA club, which Masullo was a sponsor of for nine years.
“He would pick favorite female or gay male students, text them in inappropriate ways, touch and hug them inappropriately, and take students to see movies outside of school and unrelated to school activities,” the letter said. “In nearly every case, the target of his behavior was a female or gay student, often a member of the GSA, and he would attempt to estrange these students from their parents.”
In one case, the letter alleged that Massulo would ask a girl for graphic details about her sexual activities.
The student says that the school has so far ignored her attempts to speak with them and suggested that leadership tried to downplay the incident. Other community members have also weighed in, criticizing the school for not hiring a firm to conduct an independent investigation into the accusations.
According to school officials, Masullo’s employment with USN was terminated in July after he was suspended in May to investigate the allegations. Parents want to know what the conditions of his termination were.
In response to backlash from the community, USN Board of Trustees President Eric Kopstain said on September 13 that the school would be bringing on an independent law firm to conduct an investigation into “new allegations of sexual contact made first by the alumna’s attorney and further alleged by recent letters from USN faculty to the Board of Trustees.”
“Although the investigation resulted in Dr. Masullo’s termination from USN, new information provided in letters recently received by the Board revealed general suspicions and new accusations of sexual contact concerning Dr. Masullo and the alumna that were not communicated during the initial investigation,” Kopstain wrote in a letter to the community obtained by The Daily Wire.
Kopstain added that it was asking the office of Davidson County District Attorney Glenn Funk to look into the matter and that the USN board would meet to examine and reconsider current policies related to sexual harassment.
“We apologize that our prior communications have disappointed so many of you. We regret that our communications and actions have not adequately addressed your concerns,” he wrote.
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According to the school’s website, the purpose of its Gender and Sexuality Alliance (GSA) club was “to raise awareness of issues surrounding Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and other non-binary identities.” In an interview for the school, Masullo said that he looked “forward to a day when the GSA has outlived its usefulness — when the world that we seek to create becomes a reality.”
The club would encourage members to not say anything one school day out of the year to stand “in solidarity with LGBTQ youth across the city, the state, the nation, and the world,” according to Masullo.
Parents across the country have raised concerns about GSA clubs pushing kids to focus on sexual identity, with some teachers keeping parents in the dark about their children’s involvement in the club.
