The director of the Huntington High School band has been sued by a graduate accusing him of sexually assaulting her when she was a student 14 years ago, which he denies, Newsday reported Thursday.
The suit filed in Suffolk County Supreme Court claims that Brian Stellato assaulted her at the school and elsehwere, Newsday said.
In response, district superintendent Christian Bowen told Newsday that Stellato has been “reassigned to home.”
The lawsuit names the school district, the school board, the high school and Stellato as defendants, Newsday wrote.
Newsday said that the complaint was filed Dec. 18 in Suffolk County Supreme Court, seeking unspecified monetary damages, with other paperwork filed days before the Adult Survivors Act expired.
In the complaint, Newsday wrote, the plaintiff said Stellato sexually abused her during the 2009-10 school year, when she was a senior. The complaint alleges that the abuse took place in the band room, at Elwood Park and in a hotel room during a school trip to a music conference in Rochester.
Stellato’s attorney, Jack Piana, said his client denied the allegations.
“Brian unequivocally denies any inappropriate interaction with any former or current student,” Piana said in a statement. “Brian is a respected educator and member of the community. These allegations are outrageous and Brian will fight to clear his name for as long as it takes.”
Stellato has been at Huntington High School since 2006. Before coming to Huntington, he taught in the Southampton and Sachem school districts. He was appointed the district’s director of fine and performing arts on Dec.13, 2022. He had been the department’s coordinator since April 2022.