Amherst Music Teacher 'Sickened' By Lack Of Due Process

AMHERST, NH — A high school music teacher in Amherst placed on leave this week said the investigation is connected to his employment in Londonderry in the 1990s, and he and his family are sickened by the lack of due process about the case.

Carl Benevides, a music teacher in the SAU 39 school district for more than two decades, was placed on leave on Sunday by School Superintendent Adam Steel. In a statement posted on the district's website, Steel said the leave was in response to a New Hampshire Department of Education investigation and an allegation of "inappropriate contact with a former student."

Benevides on Monday posted a note in the private Amherst NH community Facebook group responding to the allegations. He said he was told in November 2021, a month before returning to work after being on leave for months, that there were allegations against him when he was teaching in Londonderry.

“I was notified by the SAU 39 attorney that Superintendent (Adam) Steel heard that I left Londonderry High School amidst allegations of inappropriate conduct with a student,” he wrote. “At that point, Superintendent Steel filed a case with the Department of Education as a mandatory reporter. After giving my permission to open my Londonderry employee file, nothing negative was found.”

The mandatory reporting process Benevides is speaking about are education rules for teachers and administrators called Code of Conduct and Code of Ethics, approved in 2018. They require all educators certified by the state of New Hampshire to report potential or known allegations of wrongdoing. Administrators and educators can lose their certifications if they fail to report any incidents or allegations.

Benevides said he left Londonderry in 2000 when he accepted a position at Souhegan High School.

“I left Londonderry with glowing letters of recommendations and still maintain positive relationships with Londonderry music staff and former students,” he said. “I would not have been hired by SAU 39 if there were any allegations against me.”

On his LinkedIn account, Benevides does not list his teaching position at Londonderry or any teaching position before being hired in Amherst. Officials are not speaking specifically about the inappropriate contact that is alleged.

“My family and I are sickened by this and cannot believe how this can be publicized like this before any due process,” he wrote.

Benevides was on leave for a little more than three months at the beginning of the school year. After a petition and support from students and parents, Steel and Benevides came to a reinstatement agreement in early December 2021. Benevides agreed to return to class for the remainder of the school year and he would resign on June 30 and find other opportunities.

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