District apologizes for drowning death
San Ramon Valley Unified announces changes and suspends use of pools in PE classes
DANVILLE » Almost six months after Benjamin Curry drowned in the San Ramon Valley High School swimming pool while treading water with dozens of his PE classmates, the school district apologized, addressed rumors and announced policy changes in a statement released by the superintendent Friday afternoon.
Superintendent Rick Schmitt said the use of swimming pools has been suspended in all San Ramon Valley Unified School District physical education classes, and the district now requires dedicated and certified lifeguards to be present when the pools are in use for sports or other activities. The district also is continuing an internal review about use of the pool, he said.
“This event was and will remain a tragedy in our hearts and minds forever,” Schmitt wrote. “The District sincerely apologizes to the Curry family and all community members.”
Curry drowned May 8 as the 15-year-old tread water with his 56 classmates for three minutes, before instructor Aaron Becker, who doubles as the varsity football coach, added 30 seconds to the conditioning drill, according to a claim filed by the teen’s family.
It was during this additional time that an exhausted Curry slipped underwater and sank to the bottom of the Danville school’s pool, only to be found by the next period’s swim class after an hourlong lunch period, the claim said.
Attorney Andy Schwartz, who represents the family, said the Currys accepted the district’s apology, but they will never get their son back.
“There are far too many unanswered questions out there that this apology doesn’t seem to address,” he said.
Last month, the family filed a claim with the district alleging negligence and failure to protect the teen. School officials knew almost immediately after Curry’s death that he had drowned accidentally, the claim alleged, but they did nothing to publicly dispute television news reports in which students speculated the teen may have killed himself.
Friday’s district statement also attempted to “clarify rumors circulating in the community surrounding this tragic accident.”
“One rumor is that Benjamin caused or contributed to his death. More specifically, part of the rumor is that his death may have been a suicide,” Schmitt said. “Neither the Contra Costa County Coroner’s Report, nor the Danville Police investigation, indicated that Benjamin caused or contributed to his death.”
The superintendent confirmed what this news agency previously reported that law enforcement determined the death was an “accidental drowning.”
“Another rumor claims that Benjamin drowned after reentering the pool following his 4th period physical education class,” Schmitt said. “A video of the pool on May 8 shows that Benjamin entered the pool in 4th period with his classmates and did not exit the pool with his classmates at the end of the period.”
Schmitt said the district
discouraged such “inaccurate and hurtful rumors” after the drowning, including in an email it sent to parents shortly after Curry’s death. He said the district also initially honored the family’s request for privacy and to not share the teen’s name, and it felt it was inappropriate to comment on the circumstances of his death during an open police probe.
“Despite pending litigation, the District wants to be responsive to the ongoing conversation and publicly apologize to the Curry family and all community members,” Schmitt wrote.
A swim expert and lifeguard said one teacher overseeing such a large class was inadequate. Previously, Schwartz said a
surveillance video captured the students treading water in the pool as Becker stood on a diving board directly in front of Curry.
Becker’s lifeguard certification had expired two months before the drowning, and he had minimal training in water safety, according to the claim. The district had no rules or regulations in place to guide Becker on instruction of the swim class, the claim alleged.
The claim also alleges Becker “recessed the class at the end of 4th period without checking to make sure that all of his students had safely left the pool.”