An allegedly perverted special education teacher has been kicked out of a Connecticut classroom after the Post revealed he was investigated by the New York City school system for inappropriate behavior with a student.
Daniel Schiels began working for Stamford, Connecticut, public schools in August 2021, the same month that New York City’s special investigating commissioner confirmed allegations that he groomed a student for three years while teaching at a Manhattan school, starting when she was just 15.
Schiels sent the girl sexually suggestive messages on Instagram while she was attending Maxine Green High School for Imaginative Inquiry, authorities said. He asked her “how big are your breasts now” and “do you have any piercings?” according to the SCI, which investigates wrongdoing within the city’s education department.
The Post’s May report highlighted the systemic problem that the records of public school teachers under investigation in New York do not follow them to other school systems, or to other cities and states where they hold teaching positions.
When Stamford officials learned of the allegations in the Post report, “Schiels was immediately placed on administrative leave,” Christopher Soules, the district’s chief compliance officer, said in an email to a parent.
Schiels, who did not respond to a request for comment, resigned from Stamford schools in June, officials told parents.
Parents at a school where Schiels worked were outraged that they had not been informed of the allegations.
“We’re extremely, extremely concerned about this,” said the mother of a special-needs student who was in Schiels’ class in Stamford.
According to the Connecticut State Department of Education, Schiels was still licensed with the Stamford School District as of Wednesday. His LinkedIn profile says he is “open for employment.”
