A South Windsor High School who assigned a sexually explicit poem to his English students has resigned, but will be paid through the 2015-2016 school year.
David Olio was placed on paid administrative leave after sharing the poem "Please Master" by Allen Ginsberg with an advanced placement English class on Feb. 25.
According to South Windsor Supt. Kate Carter, Olio "insisted" on sharing the poem with students even after some objected and showed them a video of Ginsberg reading the poem aloud.
Carter said Olio did not warn students about the poem's explicit content or give them a chance to opt out. He also did not consult with the administration before presenting it in class.
Carter, who called the poem "inappropriate," began the process of terminating Olio in March. She wrote in a letter to Olio that the termination proceedings were due to "egregiously poor professional judgment."
"By so doing, you violated the trust placed by the Board of Education in you as a teacher, you brought discredit upon the South Windsor Public Schools, you undermined public confidence and parent trust in you as a teacher, and you put the emotional health of some students at risk," Carter wrote in the letter.
School officials said Olio will remain on paid leave until his resignation takes effect next June.
"Mr. Olio and the other parties have reached this agreement because they do not want to further distract parents, sutdents or staff from their important work of teaching and learning," a spokesperson for the school district said in a statement Tuesday.
According to his class website, Olio has taught at South Windsor High School since 1996. He received a master's degree in English from Trinity College and a bachelor's degree in secondary education and English from Central Connecticut State University.
