From: "Gustafson, Robert" <Robert.Gustafson@stonybrookschool.org> Date: Sat, 12 Nov 2011 17:41:43 +0000 To: Bennett, Diane<diane.bennett@nyu.edu>; Bottomley, Sharon<sharon.bottomley@gmail.

com>; Chapman, Alan<achapman@agasalescorp.com>; Haile, John<jhaile@brooksschool.org>; Hall, Jack<JackH@augustaprep.org>; Helmer, Davonne<d.helmer@toplineimpact.com>; Johnson, John<JAJ305@aol.com>; Kanas, Elaine<Kanas99@msn.com>; Kirk, Doug<jdkirk@kirkandtoberty.com>; Koh, Michael<michael.koh@ny.frb.org>; Koop, Norm<normkoop@comcast.net>; Koubek, Kevin<kkoubek@nype.com>; Larson, Wally<wlarson@carsonlawfirm.com>; Newton, Steve<stephen.newton@verizon.net>; Robinson, David<daverob70sbs@yahoo.com>; Tilma, Sid<stilma@earthlink.net>; Yates, Dan<dcyery@comcast.net> Subject: Last night's conference call - November 11

Dear Trustees, I must clarify some comments made during the conference call last night, November 11. I am concerned that certain faculty members are calling a board member, John Haile, about issues at the School without ever attempting to speak with me. I am also concerned, John, that you did not direct these faculty members to me or give me a heads up that you were in conversation with them. That certainly is your role as dean of faculty at Brooks, but except in the most egregious situations, this is not the role of a board member. Even as a dean of faculty you wear two hats: one as a liaison for

faculty and another as a member of the senior staff, working to hold faculty accountable for high standards of academic performance and keeping the headmaster apprised of faculty concerns and tone. Even more troubling, I have a group of faculty who are working in collusion with the Restore group and are feeding them false and misleading information. Normally a board member might assume that a faculty group is supportive of the Board, particularly on the issue of the Protestant, evangelical history and practice of the School. Since I do not know for certain which faculty members comprise this dissident group, how would a board member know? Two incidents have happened that make me very wary of open conversation with the faculty. 1. A breach of trust occurred after a faculty meeting in the chapel just a few weeks ago when the content of that meeting was misrepresented and posted on the Restore site within two hours. Some faculty members know who did this, but as yet they are unwilling to reveal names. Given that Restore is attacking the Board as well as me, I see this faculty groups lack of transparency as unacceptable from any employee in any situation. When trust

is lost in this manner, with insiders subverting the Board of Trustees and me, all collegiality is lost. The head of school can go forward only when those who are undermining the School either cease or decide to leave. To imply that I am demonizing or disenfranchising the faculty by questioning their loyalty to the School and to the Board seems out of place. In fact, it is certain faculty members who are the ones demonizing the Board, the School, and me. How can any institution or business tolerate this kind of behavior? 2. As I have stated before, the issue with my degree began the Sunday after a Saturday evening dinner I had with the chapel speaker and a faculty couple, the husband being a signer of the April Declaration. During the meal there was a discussion with the guest speaker about the Doctorate in Ministry degree he is working on at Gordon-Conwell. At some point he asked me about my Gordon-Conwell degree. I replied that I did not have a Master of Divinity degree, but a Master of Theological Studies with an emphasis in New Testament. This discussion lasted about 3-5 minutes. The next day at least one faculty member received phone calls from

a person in the Restore group asking if the faculty member could obtain a copy of a graduation program. The faculty member was confused and told the inquirer to call my office. The Restore member said she did not want to go in that direction. This faculty member came to my office on Monday and told me the whole story. At the time, this teacher was afraid that she might be a target because she holds only a B.A. degree, and she knew there were questions on the Restore site about the academic degrees of the faculty. By either Monday afternoon or Tuesday morning my degree issue was on the Internet. Ill let you connect the dots. I began last night reminding everyone that on the faculty there remain ten people who wrote and sent out the April Declaration almost two years ago. One of the signers has stated to me that they are the ones who saved the School from a disastrous change in the Platform of Principles. Had they not written the April Declaration, this person stated, the board would have railroaded a wholesale modification of the Schools identity, making it a fundamentalist, antiintellectual place.

Do not assume that the Restore group is only on the Internet. I have a Restore group here on the faculty as well. In a very real sense, the outsiders and the insiders are one in the same, and they do not want the School to be clear about its history and mission. We are, in my opinion, in a battle for the heart and soul of the vision of the founding fathers. The hatred towards me comes from a resistance to Scriptural authority because I am openly upholding the authority of Gods Word in all we do at the School. This is a deeply spiritual battle, one that every generation of Christians faces between those who uphold the Word of God and those who want to erode its authority or eradicate it altogether. This was the battle that was raging when the School was founded in 1922, and The Stony Brook School put its standard in the ground on the side of the authority of Scripture. As long as I am Headmaster, this will not change.

Character before Career

Robert E Gustafson Jr. Headmaster The Stony Brook School Stony Brook, NY 11790

631-751-1800 extension 511 robert.gustafson@stonybrookschool.org