Hayfield high school principal resigns

Hayfield High School Principal Grant Klennert has resigned following his arrest last month on charges of criminal sexual conduct from incidents that allegedly occurred 20 years ago.

Klennert submitted his resignation on December 23 and the school board accepted it on December 26, according to Supt. Gregg Slaathaug. He had been on administrative leave since his arrest.

Klennert, 37, was arrested and charged with four counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct and two counts of second-degree criminal sexual conduct. According to court documents the incidents involved multiple victims in the late 1990s and early 2000s when Klennert was a juvenile.

The assaults, according to court documents, were first reported to law enforcement officers in October of 2022 by an individual who accused Klennert of assaulting him almost weekly over several years. A second victim told officers Klennert raped her when she was about 13 years old. He is also accused of sexually assaulting a seven-year-old male in 2001.

The first victim indicated the assaults stopped in 2003 when Kleinert turned 18 and went to college.

Klennert was released on $100,000 And his next court appearance is scheduled for February 22 in Wabasha County District Court.