BETHALTO - A recent data breach in Bethalto Community Unit School District #8 targeted Superintendent Dr. Jill Griffin, according to the school district.
On Oct. 4, 2024, former district employee Barrett Deist was charged with computer tampering, a Class B misdemeanor, by the Bethalto Police Department. Deist previously worked as the chief school business official for the district. He currently serves as the business director at Roxana Community Unit School District #1.
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Deist accessed executive session and internet board documents from the Board of Education, as well as 23 personal employee files. In a press release, Bethalto Community School District #8 said that “various types of personal information” was viewed and printed.
The affected employees have been notified. Deist did not access any student files. According to the school district, the data breach was related to several Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests.
“While we do not have an explanation of intent behind this illegal breach of the District’s computer network, the police investigation did reveal a pattern,” the district said in their press release. “The breaches of board documents related directly in time and content to voluminous, detailed FOIA requests. These Freedom of Information Act requests have cost the School District thousands of dollars in legal fees because the nature of the requests required legal review.”
The district noted that the FOIA requests and investigation caused “significant disruption of district operations.” Bethalto CUSD8 added that Deist initiated “a very public smear campaign” against Griffin in the last few months.
“District operations have been disrupted almost continuously since the end of the 2023-2024 school year when the individual charged today originated complaints and a very public smear campaign against Superintendent Jill Griffin,” the district said. “The actions for which this individual is charged appear to be a continuation of an attempt to discredit the superintendent.”
Deist resigned in May 2024. His departure was followed by the resignations of school board members Jeff Whaley and Kory Stassi.
On Monday, Oct. 7, 2024, Griffin noted that the 2024-2025 school year is off to a positive start, and she is looking ahead.
“I look forward to putting all of this behind us and moving forward with the 2024-25 school year with our students as our focus,” Griffin said. “This week is homecoming across the district and an opportunity to honor our long-standing traditions while celebrating our students. Our administrators recently shared in our Board meeting that we have had one of the best starts to the school year we can remember in years and we want to continue with that momentum.”
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