Lynnfield teacher fired over ‘alleged hate-based ideologies’

A substitute math teacher working at Lynnfield High School was fired Monday because of his “alleged connection to hate-based ideologies,” school officials said.

Lynnfield Public Schools Superintendent Tom Geary wrote in a letter to families Monday that “Mr. Reihner” was fired after the district became aware of the allegations Sunday evening.

“This information and behavior does not align with our values ​​as a school community,” Geary wrote. “Out of an abundance of caution, we have school counselors contacting potentially affected students, and we have a heavy police presence at the high school today. Providing a safe learning environment for every student and staff member will always be our top priority.

According to its database, only one educator with the last name Reihner is registered with the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. Jarek Reihner received an emergency extension of his mathematics teaching license in August.

Reihner completed mandatory background and fingerprint checks before starting in Lynnfield, Geary said. So far, the school has not received any reports that “he attempted to influence students’ beliefs or actions in a negative or derogatory manner,” according to the principal.

Although Geary did not reveal Reihner’s specific alleged hateful beliefs, the superintendent offered support to members of the Jewish community in the letter. He said the district contacted the Anti-Defamation League to respond appropriately to the school.

“Any anti-Semitic hatred is particularly troubling and isolating for members of our Jewish community,” Geary wrote. “The timing of this situation, around the High Holidays and October 7, the anniversary of the violence in Israel, is also worrying. »

Blog claims Reihner is a white supremacist and anti-Semitic conspiracy theorist

One student said these beliefs were “discovered by seniors at (the) school,” WHDH reported.

“They’re the ones who found it,” sophomore Gabriella Dambrosio said. “If you hire someone that high school kids can go online and find information on so easily, it’s clearly like you just haven’t done your job well enough.”

The timing of Reihner’s firing matches that of a local “anti-fascist” blog, By Way of Plymouth, which published a feature on him on Sunday.

The blog alleges that Reihner is an American white supremacist, an anti-Semitic conspiracy theorist, a self-described neo-Nazi, and a member of the Patriot Front, a white supremacist group.

The filing claims that Reihner wrote in internal discussions that he would “salute Hitler as much as I want” and said that “the only approved standards for hair and mustache care” were Adolf Hitler’s style .

The blog post also shares several photos of Reihner at far-right protests in Boston from 2017 to 2019.

Although there was an increased police presence at the high school on Monday, Lynnfield Police Chief Nick Secatore told Boston.com the department did not believe there was an active threat.

“There is simply no place for hate in our schools or in our city,” Geary wrote.

Reihner did not respond to a request for comment Tuesday evening.