A Friends’ Central Latin teacher accused of sexual misconduct has resigned after a school investigation
Margaret Somerville was accused earlier this year of having sexual contact with a student "some 20 years ago," the school said Monday.
A longtime Latin teacher at Friends’ Central School in Wynnewood was accused earlier in the school year of having sexual contact with a student two decades ago, and an internal investigation found the allegations credible, school officials said Monday.
Margaret Somerville, known to many as Margaret Roberts, recently resigned from the private Quaker school, officials said in a message to the community. Somerville, an ordained minister, was placed on administrative leave after the school said it received the allegations “earlier this academic year.”
The school, which said it immediately reported the allegations to the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services’ ChildLine, said it cooperated fully with local law enforcement, including by not conducting its own investigation until law enforcement’s review was completed. It wasn’t clear which department investigated, or what the result of that review was; Friends’ Central declined to comment Monday.
But the school said it retained an independent investigator, Kristine Grady Derewicz of Littler Mendelson, P.C., who found the allegations credible.
“The actions of this teacher are serious, distressing and absolutely unacceptable,” the Friends’ Central communications office said in a statement to The Inquirer.
The school — which said in its message to the community the alleged misconduct took place “some 20 years ago” — did not address questions about the nature of the conduct, including whether it occurred at the school.
Based on both the allegations and Derewicz’s investigation, “there is no indication that Margaret Somerville engaged in sexual misconduct with any other students during her tenure at the school,” officials said in the community message.
Somerville did not immediately respond to requests for comment Monday. According to her LinkedIn page, she taught at Friends’ Central from 1999 until 2023, and also developed Prima Lingua, a course introducing students to the study of world and classical languages.
Somerville also directs an organization called “Alignment: Interfaith Contemplative Practices.” Until Monday afternoon, she was listed as a member of the board of Interfaith Philadelphia. A message left with Interfaith Philadelphia was not immediately returned Monday.
Somerville, who graduated from Friends’ Central in 1983, was ordained in the Presbyterian Church in 2017, according to alumni notes in a 2018 issue of the school’s magazine.
“It was wonderful to have so many FCS colleagues, students, parents, and alumni/ae sharing in this special event,” Somerville said in the 2018 notes.
In the community message Monday, Friends’ Central said that while it “has felt like a long period of silence” from the school since Somerville was placed on leave, “we hope that, as a community, you understand our need to comply with law enforcement’s directives.”
On Tuesday, upper and middle school students will hear from their principals, the school said, and counselors will be available for students who need additional support.