College employee fired six months after pleading guilty to distributing child pornography

According to a college spokesman, Dartmouth fired family giving coordinator Marc Jacques on Sept. 19. Six months earlier, Jacques had pleaded guilty in federal court to one count of distribution of child pornography.

According to college spokeswoman Kathryn Kennedy, human resources did not learn of Jacques’ plea agreement until Sept. 18, nine days after his sentencing in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Hampshire. According to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Hampshire, Jacques was sentenced on September 9 to five years in federal prison and five years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $26,500 in restitution. He must surrender to prison “on or before” December 2, according to a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

The college learned of Jacques’ crimes through the same press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Kennedy wrote in an email statement to The Dartmouth.

“The former employee was placed on administrative leave within hours [of learning]“, she wrote. “His employment at Dartmouth was terminated the following day.”

Jacques did not notify Dartmouth when he pleaded guilty to the charge in March, Kennedy added — a violation of college policy. According to the policies governing reference checks, background checks, conduct records checks and reference requests, all current college employees have “the ongoing responsibility to inform Dartmouth of any felony or misdemeanor convictions or pleas that constitute an admission of responsibility .” However, the college is not automatically notified in such situations, Kennedy wrote.

“There is no existing mechanism by which Dartmouth or an employer will be notified if one of their current employees is arrested or charged with an alleged crime, nor if an employee may plead guilty or be convicted,” Kennedy explained.

A spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office declined to comment on whether Dartmouth was informed of Jacques’ allegations or the deal.

While Jacques pleaded guilty in March 2024, his activities had raised concerns for years beforehand. According to the U.S. Attorney’s press release, Jacques’ IP address was reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in at least 40 CyberTips – NCMEC’s ​​hotline for reporting child sexual exploitation – between 2018 and 2022.

After a federal search warrant was executed on Jacques’ residence and person in June 2022, law enforcement officials found more than 200 files containing “obvious” child sexual abuse material, messages between Jacques and others related to child sexual exploitation, and evidence that Jacques According to the press release, he distributed child pornography.

In September 2022, Jacques began working on a “temporary basis” under a contract with an employment agency in Dartmouth, Kennedy wrote in a follow-up statement. He was subsequently hired by the college as a full-time family giving coordinator in November 2022. His background checks had yielded “no findings” at this point, she added.

“Dartmouth regularly uses agencies to meet short-term staffing needs,” Kennedy wrote. “[Dartmouth’s] Contracts with agencies require that they screen their candidates in a manner consistent with Dartmouth’s standards. In this case, the temp agency representing him had also conducted a background check on the former employee.”

According to the college’s employment policy, finalist candidates for all non-academic staff positions at Dartmouth are subject to “background checks of employment, educational, criminal, sexual and violent offender records, as well as external conduct reviews … from prior employment.” if necessary, an educational institution.”

A Dartmouth employee who requested anonymity to speak candidly wrote in an email statement to The Dartmouth that many employees were “shocked” and “saddened” by Jacques’ conviction. The employee initially learned of Jacques’ dismissal from a “concerned colleague” outside of work, rather than from college management, they added.

“Other employees hear about this from colleagues or in the news – why hasn’t Dartmouth leadership addressed this?” the anonymous employee wrote.

Kennedy wrote that the college releases employees’ exit information “to those who have a business need to know” to “ensure that personnel matters are handled confidentially and with integrity.”

“We recognize how frustrating this is and the anger and pain that learning this information after the fact can cause,” she wrote. “We communicate directly with these employees and provide support services through the Faculty/Staff Assistance Program.”

According to the U.S. Attorney’s press release, Jacques’ case was filed “as part of” Project Safe Childhood – a nationwide initiative to “combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse” through collaboration between federal law enforcement agencies, State and local levels to the PSC website.

Kay Reynolds, associate director of family relations and engagement, Jeffrey Rodriguez, associate director of leadership giving, Carly Sokolik, director of family giving and engagement, and Mary Beth Westward, coordinator of leadership giving, did not respond to multiple requests for comment at the time of publication.

An email to Jacques returned an automated message, which The Dartmouth forwarded to Sokolik.