Dr. Matthew Constant, former Superintendent for Owensboro Public Schools, has been arrested on charges relating to the sexual solicitation of minors, according to the Kentucky State Police. Constant was arrested Thursday afternoon by KSP.
Constant is currently charged with Procuring or Promoting the Use of a Minor (12 years old or older) and Tampering with Physical Evidence. KSP said in a release the investigation is still in the early phases and has spanned into other states, and that additional charges are likely.
According to a release, KSP detectives began the investigation in late May after allegations regarding a relationship involving Constant and an unknown-aged student were made.
The investigation resulted in search warrants of Constant’s electronic devices to examine the contents.
Commonwealth’s Attorney Bruce Kuegel said he was unavailable for comment tonight.
Constant is being held in the Daviess County Detention Center.
On June 22, the OPS Board of Education voted unanimously to suspend Constant without pay and begin the proceedings to terminate his contract “for conduct unbecoming of a superintendent.” While no criminal charges had been filed at that time, the board said they had been informed by police that Constant “did engage in a relationship with an adult-aged student enrolled in another school district.”
Board Chair Dr. Jeremy Luckett said on June 22 that the board had enough information “to make the determination that Dr. Constant acted in a manner unbecoming of what we expect for our students and their families, and therefore he is no longer capable of leading the district.”
Following Constant’s arrest Thursday, Luckett issue the following statement: “The Board of Education takes no stance on the guilt or innocence of Dr. Constant in relation to the charges filed by the Kentucky State Police. Based on the information we were previously provided by the State Police, our district had already made the decision to terminate the contract of Dr Constant and have shifted our focus toward the 2023-24 school year.”
While the board began the termination process, Constant actually retired and terminated his employment a week later.
According to a letter sent from Kentucky Commissioner of Education Jason Glass to Luckett:
On June 30, 2023, R. Michael Sullivan, attorney for Dr. Constant, notified the Kentucky Department of Education via email of Dr. Constant’s notice of retirement and termination of Employment Agreement dated April 23, 2020, both effective July 1, 2023. Since Dr. Constant has retired and terminated his Employment Agreement, the request from the Owensboro Independent Board of Education to remove Dr. Constant is moot.
Constant had been suspended with pay as of May 25, when the board learned of the ongoing investigation by KSP into the actions of the superintendent.
Constant was nearing the end of the third year in his four-year contract. He started out making $149,000 per year, but after increases over the last two years was currently making $164,857 per year.
