The head of the exclusive Upper East Side private school Dalton last night apologized for mistakenly releasing names of families whose children were applying and some who were embarrassingly rejected by the prestigious school.
Page Six revealed that Dalton had divulged confidential admission information — including the names of a number of kids who didn’t get in or whose parents had withdrawn their applications — as part of a drive to raise more funds for the school, which counts among its graduates “Homeland” star Claire Danes and CNN’s Anderson Cooper.
Yesterday, Dalton’s head of school, Ellen Stein, issued an e-mail to alumni in a bid to contain the damage and stem the anger of humiliated parents.
Stein explained, “In November 2012, a committee of twelve alumni from one class met to plan their upcoming reunion and to discuss a class reunion gift. In an effort to be sensitive to alumni families and other applicants . . . we do not involve families in one-on-one philanthropic solicitations while they are in the application process.
“Following the meeting, minutes were sent to the committee that listed eight classmates’ names and their recent admissions history. Three other classmates were listed as being in the admissions process as of November 2012. We apologize for and deeply regret the release of this information.
“We are reviewing our protocols to ensure that information about the admissions status of all Dalton families and applicants is protected and remains confidential. We have reached out to apologize personally to those eleven alumni whose names were listed.”
Page Six revealed that the blunder happened as alumni were encouraged to reach out to families that may have not succeeded in their applications, to increase donations. But some parents are fuming, and considering legal action
A school rep told us there have been no firings over the breach of privacy — yet: “No one was terminated. Steps are being taken to address the situation.”