By Anca Ulea, Managing Editor
ASB President Dan Hurd said he officially resigned his position last month after two photos of him drinking alcohol were anonymously turned in to administrators.
The photos posted on his Facebook showed Dan, an 18-year-old senior, holding and drinking a beer at his family’s New Year’s party.
In his announcement to the fourth period leadership class on Feb. 12, Dan said his cousin uploaded the photos. But later, in a letter to The Californian, Dan wrote he accidentally posted them himself, while trying to upload photos from a choir concert.
“I didn’t even realize there were pictures of me holding the beer, and I certainly didn’t mean to upload them,” Dan wrote.
His behavior conflicts with the code of conduct supported by the leadership class, and the “zero tolerance” policy for drugs and alcohol.
Leadership students must sign a contract at the beginning of the year which states that “any student found using or selling alcohol or illegal drugs may be removed from the leadership class/program.”
The contract uses the word “may,” which allows administrators to decide whether a student is removed from the leadership program, said Principal Mark Corti.
“When we look at (the situation), (our decision is) all based on what will be legally supported,” said Corti.
Because Dan was under parental supervision while drinking, he believed he was not doing anything wrong.
“I did not think about the contract on New Year’s Eve because I was nowhere near San Ramon, there were no other students there, and because I was with my family,” Dan wrote in his letter.
Dan added, “It was in a controlled environment, it was New Years, and I wasn’t driving.”
The circumstances surrounding the photos have made some leadership students question whether Dan’s violation of the contract was justified.
“You live by (your parents’) rules if you’re in your own household,” said new ASB President Gio Javier, who replaced Dan. “I think it was an unfortunate mistake (that the photos were posted on Facebook).”
Dan’s mother Rachel Hurd, who is president of the school district Board of Education, is concerned the leadership contract goes beyond the school’s jurisdiction, because it has to do with a student’s private life.
“(Dan) asked Corti to consider the circumstances surrounding the incident, but Corti had to uphold the contract,” said Hurd. “That’s why Dan was not removed from the leadership class: because he was in a controlled environment with family.”
Corti would not comment on his role in Dan’s resignation, but said the decision was consistent with similar situations.
“When a student signs a contract, we expect them to adhere to the stipulations of that contract,” said Corti.
A similar situation occurred in 2007 when several elected student government officers were removed from office after photos of them drinking were posted on the Internet and anonymously submitted to administrators.
Earlier this year, four members of the varsity cheerleading team were suspended for two weeks after photos of them smoking a hookah were turned in anonymously to the school.
Some students believe Dan’s photo scandal was the final breaking point of an unsatisfactory presidency.
“He didn’t really act like a leader and the pictures were the final straw,” said sophomore Audrey Phillips, a leadership student.
Regardless of past events, Dan expressed his deep regret for his recent actions.
“I believe it is important for a student leader to model safe behavior at all times,” Dan wrote. “I am sorry that these pictures were taken and show me in a bad light.”
