Archbishop Hoban High School’s theater director has been criminally charged with assaulting a female student in an incident that allegedly occurred on stage inside the school on March 24 of last year.
Nearly four months after he was reported to the Akron Police Department, Chad Kendall, 36, was charged with first-degree misdemeanor assault in Akron Municipal Court on May 28. He was subsequently placed on administrative leave by the school.
Kendall is listed as a teacher in the Catholic school’s fine arts and performing arts programs and leads the production of student plays. It is unclear when Kendall was hired by Hoban — the private school’s records are not public — but playbills and event postings indicate he has been with the school since at least 2023.
The school sent a four paragraph-long email to parents on May 29 (posted in full below) that didn’t identify Kendall, the specific charge he faced, when and how the school learned of the incident, what its internal investigation consisted of or how credible it viewed the allegations prior to criminal charges being filed.
Archbishop Hoban President Chris DiMauro confirmed the authenticity of the email on Wednesday but said he couldn’t elaborate on what the school knew and how the school handled the accusation because “all other details are considered an internal and ongoing HR matter.”
Signal Akron, after learning on Wednesday that an unnamed teacher had been placed on leave, cross-checked the school’s staff directory with entries in Akron’s Municipal Court and identified the May 28 charge against Kendall. Signal Akron also obtained the incident report that led to the criminal charge against the teacher as well as the email sent last week to parents of Hoban students.
Assault occurred in March 2024, reported in February 2025
According to police and court records, Kendall is alleged to have assaulted a Hoban student at the school on the evening of March 24, 2024 — a Sunday. Kendall and Hoban theater students were weeks away from their spring performances of “The Little Mermaid.”
The former student reported the incident to the Akron Police Department on Feb. 7, 2025, when she was no longer attending Hoban. According to the incident report, “She called to report that the suspect assaulted her last March on a stage in a gymnasium at Hoban High School. No report was made at that time. Suspect is a teacher at Hoban.”
Charges against Kendall were filed in the Akron Municipal Court 110 days after the former student called the police. He was booked on a single count of assault. The assault statute he’s accused of violating states, in part: “No person shall recklessly cause serious physical harm to another.” Kendall pleaded not guilty at his May 28 arraignment.
The theater director, who is also a choir teacher, was placed on administrative leave 14 months after the alleged assault took place.
Below is the email sent to parents of Archbishop Hoban students:
Dear Hoban Family,
Yesterday, the Hoban administration was informed that a member of our teaching staff has been charged with a first-degree misdemeanor. It is our understanding that the charge involves a former student’s allegations regarding a situation that occurred in the Spring of 2024. Following our policies and procedures, the employee has immediately been placed on administrative leave and is not permitted access to Hoban’s campus while this legal process continues. We will keep you informed of significant developments.
Rest assured when the incident involving the staff member was reported to us, we launched a thorough internal investigation. Based on the results of the investigation, we took appropriate action to address the situation.
Being transparent with our staff and families is important, especially when challenged with difficult scenarios like this one. As always, the safety and well-being of students and providing timely communication with families remains our foremost priority.
Thank you for your continued trust and support of Hoban as we navigate this situation.
