David Creech, who abruptly resigned as principal of Scarborough High School in 2018, has now resigned from his position at Marshwood Middle School in Eliot. Ben McCanna/Staff Photographer

The principal of Marshwood Middle School in Eliot has resigned two weeks after a district employee filed for a temporary protection from harassment order against him.

A woman who worked with David Creech at the school alleged in a court filing that he contacted her frequently outside of work, sent her an inappropriate music video, and became so obsessed with her that he repeatedly told her he loved her and came to her house when she was out sick to drop off a gift certificate for a massage. Creech disputes the accusations, according to his attorney, who called the filing “factually bankrupt.”

Creech resigned effective June 30. According to the resignation letter he submitted to the district Tuesday, he is leaving “due to health matters that will require my attention.”

Creech will not return to the school, Maine School Administrative District 35 Superintendent John Caverly confirmed Wednesday. The district serves students from South Berwick and Eliot.

The superintendent said he was aware of the protection from harassment order but said privacy laws prevent him from confirming if the district had received or investigated any complaints about Creech’s alleged behavior. He also could not say if Creech had been on leave prior to his resignation.

The court filing references a harassment investigation filed by MSAD 35, but it was not clear Wednesday if that investigation was internal or involved police. Eliot Police Chief Elliott Moya said his department does not have an investigation involving Creech. South Berwick Police also said they are not investigating him.

Caverly said the district prides itself on having a safe and supportive environment and “should there be an allegation of bullying or harassment of any kind, we would follow our procedures to handle such things.”

Gregg Frame, an attorney who represents Creech, said Wednesday that his client’s doctor told him before this school year that he should not go back to work because of his medical issue. Creech missed quite a bit of school this year because of it and felt the end of his contract in June was an appropriate time to leave, Frame said.

Creech told the district he is available to help with the transition to new school leadership and “wishes the district nothing but the best,” Frame said.

RESUME IN SOUTHERN MAINE

Parents were notified of Creech’s resignation Wednesday morning and Caverly met with staff that afternoon to talk about plans for the remainder of the school year. The district will start looking for a new principal this week.

Creech had worked for MSAD 35 since August 2021.

“Marshwood Middle School is a special place with special people, and I have thoroughly enjoyed my time and my interactions with students, faculty, staff and the administration,” Creech wrote in his resignation letter. “While I won’t be around for the remainder of the school year, I will be cheering for everyone to end the year on a positive note, and for Marshwood Middle School to continue to be a great place to learn, teach and work.”

This is not the first time Creech has abruptly left a school in southern Maine.

In 2018, Creech suddenly resigned as principal of Scarborough High School amid a districtwide controversy over new school start times. At the time, his wife wrote on Facebook that he was heartbroken and “forced to resign” by the superintendent. His supporters launched a #WeStandWithCreech social media campaign and residents angered by how he was treated by school officials later recalled three school board members.

Months later, he was hired as interim principal at Winthrop High School. The following year he became the athletic director at Yarmouth High School.

In a statement Wednesday night, Winthrop Superintendent Jim Hodgkin said Creech worked at the district for a year and “left on his own.”

He “was very well-respected by the students, staff and community of Winthrop. There were no complaints that needed to be investigated,” Hodgkin said.

The superintendent in Yarmouth did not respond to emails Wednesday afternoon asking about Creech’s tenure there.

Martha Guptill, a longtime front-office worker at Marshwood Middle School, alleges that Creech was so intimidating it prompted her to resign. Her replacement is the woman who filed the complaint. The Press Herald is not identifying her because of the nature of the allegations.

She declined Wednesday to speak with a reporter about the case because of an upcoming hearing and out of concern for her family.

A hearing about whether to extend the protection order is scheduled for July 24.

‘INTIMIDATION AND BULLYING’

In those filings, the woman said that Creech began “communicating constantly” with her both in and out of work starting at the end of January.

“He sent sexual music videos to me via text after work on Jan. 20th,” the woman wrote. “He told me he loved me regularly for months both in person and text.”

The woman said Creech went to her home multiple times, including once when she was sick to give her a gift card for a massage. He also gave her money and “would tell me not to trust anyone but him, that he would be thinking of me, that I was beautiful and he missed me,” she wrote.

The woman requested the temporary order, saying she was concerned he would continue to try to contact her.

“He has made some irrational choices in and out of school lately so I’m worried of what he may do,” she said.

Frame said his client “absolutely disputes” the information in the woman’s court filing and looks forward to the opportunity to seek a dismissal during the court hearing in July.

“Even on its face, which is inaccurate, it doesn’t reach the level of protection from harassment,” Frame said. “It’s not even close.”

Guptill, who worked in the school’s front office for 30 years until she resigned last May, said Creech’s “whole administrative style is based on intimidation and bullying.”

She said Creech frequently lectured her and others, sometimes for long periods of time without letting them speak.

“It was absolutely awful,” she said.

Guptill said she reached her breaking point and decided to leave her job after she said he intimidated and lectured her in front of other office staff. When she resigned, Guptill said she went to Caverly with her concerns about Creech’s management style and the way he treated people.

“I loved it there. I loved the students, I loved the people I worked with,” she said. “I just couldn’t stand another moment of working with him.”