Northmont assistant principal is guilty of disorderly conduct

A Northmont High School assistant principal pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct in Clark County Municipal Court in December after originally being arrested on a count of telephone harassment.

Court records show that an ex-girlfriend of James Chad Kaltenbach told Enon police in July that she was “being harassed and stalked” by Kaltenbach.

Court documents show Enon Police Lt. Michael Holler spoke to Kaltenbach the following day and told him he was not to contact the woman again.

Less than a week later, the woman provided evidence that Kaltenbach continued to contact her, according to court records. Enon police served Kaltenbach with a charge of telephone harassment, and court records show Kaltenbach pleaded guilty to a charge of disorderly conduct in the case in December.

He received a 15-day sentence, but all 15 days were suspended on the condition that Kaltenbach have no contact with the victim for six months.

Northmont schools spokeswoman Jenny Wood said Wednesday that Kaltenbach remains an assistant principal. Asked if he had been disciplined, Wood said the district does not comment on personnel matters.

Kaltenbach could not immediately be reached for comment Wednesday.

Ohio Department of Education officials, speaking generally about procedure, said whether an educator is required to report a conviction to a school would be governed by the school’s local policies.

But they said Ohio’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation updates ODE daily on any educators who have been arrested, charged or convicted of a criminal offense.

“If the Department receives notification from BCI of a new arrest, charge or conviction, we notify the employing school, and it typically triggers an investigation by the Department’s Office of Professional Conduct,” ODE spokeswoman

Mandy Minick said.

Kaltenbach is also named in a pending federal lawsuit against Northmont schools by a family whose son was suspended in February 2019. That lawsuit claims that Kaltenbach and police assigned to the school enforced “racially motivated unfair discipline.” There is also a civil lawsuit about the boy’s suspension in Montgomery County Common Pleas Court.