Marlborough College is reeling from a tragedy that occurred earlier this month.
It’s a school Princess Kate Middleton knows well, earning a gold Duke of Edinburgh Award during her time there as a student. Now her former school is in the news for the wrong reasons after one of its staff members committed suicide. John Wright, who served as a physics teacher at the college, was found dead by hanging by his wife on November 3.
John had reportedly been on the school’s staff for close to a decade.
A teacher at Kate Middleton’s former school was fired for “inappropriate conduct” and later died
News of this tragedy comes after the school took action against the longtime teacher. It appears as though John was in distress after losing a job he’d had for several years.
The Daily Mail reports that he was let go for “inappropriate conduct.” This stems from a 17-day spring break trip to Malaysia, where one of Marlborough’s affiliate schools is located. There were 29 students reportedly on the journey.
Over the summer, following an internal investigation, the school’s administration decided to dismiss John. He appealed the ruling, but reports indicate that he was unsuccessful. An inquest into John’s death was opened on November 7.
It’s not clear exactly what John did that was deemed unacceptable, though a source claims he might have made some inappropriate comments. The source adds that most of his remarks were “innocuous,” meaning not harmful.
Kate, along with her siblings Pippa and James Middleton, also attended Marlborough, as did Princess Eugenie, daughter of disgraced Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. Earlier this week the BBC apologized for failing to use Kate’s royal title during an Armistice Day broadcast on November 11.
Marlborough is considered among the most prestigious schools in the UK, with an estimated annual tuition fee of £60,000 (approx $78k US).
The school released a statement offering its heartfelt condolences to John’s family. He leaves behind his wife, Rachel, and two children. John was 54.
TELL US – SHOULD MARLBOROUGH ACCEPT SOME OF THE RESPONSIBILITY FOR THIS TRAGEDY?
