Peabody teacher resigns as district investigates Charlie Kirk posts

A Peabody high school teacher won’t return to the classroom after school officials said it placed them on leave following "alleged violations of district policies and procedures, including but not limited to inappropriate social media posts following the death of Charlie Kirk."

The district placed two teachers on leave at Peabody Veterans Memorial High School to investigate, School Superintendent Josh Vadala confirmed Thursday.

The school district did not provide details about the comments or how they violated school policy.

Vadala said in a statement the investigation into one of the teachers is continuing, but the other teacher will “not be returning to their position at Peabody High School.”

Vadala’s statement did not say whether the instructor was fired or resigned after being placed on leave, but a union spokeswoman called it a resignation.

Jessica Tang, president of the American Federation of Teachers Massachusetts, which represents educators in the district, condemned Peabody's decision to put the teachers on leave over social media posts.

"Educators are allowed to have opinions on public concerns, just like everyone else," she said. "Instead of protecting that right, Peabody and other school districts have created conditions where educators and their family members are facing harassment and threats, even as many accusations have proven to be unfounded.”

More than 30 educators and other workers across the country have been fired, placed on leave or investigated over comments about Kirk, the founder of the conservative youth organization Turning Point USA. Kirk was killed by a gunman while speaking to students at Utah Valley University.

In one of the most high profile suspensions, ABC temporarily took late night host Jimmy Kimmel off the air after complaints by the Federal Communications Commission chair. Despite the show's return, two large local television networks, Nexstar and Sinclair, have opted not to air Kimmel on their ABC affiliates.