ETNA — Allegations of sexual improprieties and intimidation at the Etna-Dixmont Elementary School were raised at an SAD 38 committee meeting and will be the subject of a special meeting of the full School Board at 7 p.m. Wednesday, July 18.

Two current school employees and one former employee gave the board written notices of their allegations against school principal Lawrence Plaisted. In an interview late Monday evening, Plaisted stated that all the allegations reported to him were unfounded. He reported that he had been ill and unable to attend the meeting.

Nearly 60 people attended the informal meeting which shed some light on unanswered questions which have been plaguing the two towns of Etna and Dixmont over the last several weeks.

Originally the meeting’s agenda had been to begin a survey of the school to determine how morale could be improved. But with so many people attending looking for answers or wanting to give answers, the meeting quickly moved to a 3 1/2-hour public session.

“I have experienced sexual harassment on several occasions while employed by the Etna-Dixmont School during the 1989-90 school year,” said Shirley Lavoie, a teaching assistant and night-time custodian at the school.

She told the committee that on a number of occasions, Plaisted had made “improper physical contact,” with her, including embracing her for nearly a minute while they were alone in a room. “I froze in fright,” she said.

Also during the meeting, fifth-grade teacher Victoria Baker handed in her resignation.

“I can’t teach in such an atmosphere,” Baker told the committee. Among her allegations, Baker told the committee about a number of incidents and comments that Plaisted had allegedly made.

“He said that I must want something from him if I dressed to please him,” she said. Baker added that he had told her that her physical appearance was the reason why she was able to obtain supplies and receive permission to go on field trips and other special school activities.

“That’s ridiculous,” Plaisted said over the phone. He added that it was ludicrous that such accusations should come before the committee.

In addition to allegations of verbal intimidation and impropriety, former school employee Melissa Gray also alleges that she was unfairly terminated from her position as full-time substitute teacher and office clerk.

According to Gray, she had been notified by a letter from Plaisted on Dec. 1 of last year that she would have until Dec. 1 to improve in the areas he identified as needing improvement. Some of these areas, and a number of accusations were untrue, Gray told the committee. She states she was then unjustly terminated in March.

Since she wasn’t a contracted teacher, she couldn’t appeal through the appropriate grievance procedure. And Affirmative Action was not an option since Plaisted was a local coordinator for it, she said.

Instead she said she turned to the board. But after both sides were heard, she said, nothing was done.

When questioned by audience members why the board did nothing when a staff member was raising issues of improprieties, Board Chairman Phil Dolan, of Dixmont, said that she had not registered a formal complaint. “The board can’t act on rumor and hearsay,” he said.

Plaisted responded that Gray’s termination was handled using the proper procedures and had gone through the superintendent’s office. Furthermore, he said the fact that the board did not act was an indication that it supported the administration.

The principal further commented that the allegations were an orchestrated way to publicly embarrass the administration.

A number of committee members and those in the audience also recommended that not only do they look at what has happened in the past, but what can be done for the future.

The committee unanimously approved establishing a survey of current and past school staff to determine what can be done to improve the atmosphere and climate at the school. The survey will be done through the University of Maine College of Education.