School leaders fined for taking sons to see “Hamilton” with tickets meant for students
By Neal Riley
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BOSTON (WBZ) — An ex-Boston Public Schools principal and her assistant principal have each been fined after admitting to taking their sons to see the popular musical “Hamilton” with tickets that were donated to students, the State Ethics Commission said.
Former Boston Tobin School principal Natasha Halfkenny and assistant principal Coreen Miranda both waived their right to a hearing and each paid a $4,000 civil fine for violating the conflict of interest law, according to the commission.
The Boston Educational Development Fund, which is a fundraising partner to Boston schools, secured a donation of 14 “Hamilton” tickets last year at the Citizens Bank Opera House in Boston for 12 students and two chaperones. The tickets would have each cost $149 to buy on their own.
Miranda designated herself and Halfkenny as the chaperones without offering the opportunity to any other school employees, the commission said. And she allocated two of the student tickets to her sons and one to Halfkenny’s son, none of whom were Boston Public Schools students.
Miranda posted to social media, “[W]e get to take 12 of our students to see Hamilton, an opportunity that many will never have the chance to see.” The ethics commission said that in fact, only eight students got to see the show.
The report did not say why Halfkenny was no longer the principal at Tobin.
“By choosing to allocate three of the donated Hamilton tickets to their own sons who were not Tobin School or BPS students, Halfkenny and Miranda denied three Tobin School students of the opportunity to attend the show and violated the conflict of interest law,” said State Ethics Commission Executive Director David Wilson in a statement. “This case is a reminder that public employees must not use their official positions to get themselves or others special, valuable privileges to which they are not entitled, and that there are legal consequences for doing so.”
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