During Term 1 and 2, Morgan made inappropriate comments of a sexual nature while in his capacity as house assistant.
Two Year 10 students reported concerns about Morgan to the school’s director of boarding.
They said Morgan had made inappropriate comments to, and in front of, students, specifically at the end of the day when they shared a “thought of the day”.
The “thought of the day” discussions were used by Morgan as a way to wind down the students before bedtime, with the intention of having a low-energy conversation.
The students said comments made by Morgan during these discussions included, “Would you have regular sex with a seven out of 10 or have a one-night stand with a nine out of 10?” and, “Would you sleep with an absolute 10 out of 10 if she was crazy as?”
The decision states he also asked, “How long would you wait to have sex with a dead girl?”
Morgan also engaged in banter and jokes with a student over the course of several days, while other students were present.
During this exchange, the decision says Morgan told the student he’d “come on your mum’s back”.
After Morgan made the comment, he apologised to the student.
Later that month, Morgan made inappropriate comments in front of several students when speaking about hunting. He reportedly said, “Be careful you … boys don’t f*** [goats]”.
Morgan voluntarily resigned after the complaint. He has been approached for comment.
“While we did not have direct evidence of impact on the students, we are able to infer that this type of conduct would obviously have had a negative impact on the students,” the tribunal’s deputy chair, Ian Murray, said in today’s decision.
“This subject matter raised in this way with students of this age by a person in the role of the respondent would have led to embarrassment, caused confusion, and possibly triggered ridicule of the students from peers who overheard the comments.
“As a result, we find that it is clearly established that the misconduct would have negatively impacted on the well-being of the students.”
Although Morgan was now teaching in Australia, he did express an intention to return to teach in this country at some stage.
Morgan told the tribunal that he had personal traits that were destructive and led to the misconduct in this case, and he felt he could now identify his triggers for this type of behaviour.
He had made significant changes to his life, and this desire to change was one of the main reasons for his move to Australia.
At the time of the hearing, he was a teacher at St Patrick’s College in Shorncliffe, north of Brisbane, but is now teaching at Chanel College in Gladstone, Queensland.
The Queensland College of Teachers was aware of his teaching background.
Chanel College Queensland, where Jason Morgan now works. Screenshot / Google Maps
He told the tribunal that teachers in Australia undertake regular behavioural training, and he felt that had been beneficial for him. It had assisted him in understanding and modifying his behaviour.
“We were certainly troubled by the conduct in this case,” Murray said.
“It was not just the inappropriate sexual nature of the comments but the context that they were made in and that they were repeated on several occasions.”
Because Morgan was no longer teaching in New Zealand, the options for potential penalties were limited.
The tribunal said the incidents amounted to serious misconduct and imposed a censure.
Brianna McIlraith is a Queenstown-based reporter for Open Justice covering courts in the lower South Island. She has been a journalist since 2018 and has had a strong interest in business and financial journalism.