A birthday party at the ritzy home of an Arizona school district board member that was meant to be a small gathering of friends turned to chaos when 500 teenagers found out about it on social media and descended on the property.
Officers arrived at the November 7 party around 9pm after receiving reports of underage drinking and a huge crowd at a Paradise Valley house.
There, they found about 500 high schoolers scattered around the property belonging to Dr. Mathew Pittinsky, a Scottsdale Unified School District Governing Board member who has served in the position for about one year.
The home is listed as being worth more than $6million online.
One of the teens was reportedly taken to the hospital to be treated for suspected alcohol poisoning.
Pittinsky told Arizona’s Family that the party was meant to be private and invite-only, and that he had hired security to confiscate any alcohol brought by minors at the door.
The board member said word of the event had spread like wildfire on social media, and the teens arrived in droves after someone had posted his address.
He said the high schoolers had come from a separate party that was shut down earlier that night.
Police found about 500 uninvited high schoolers scattered around the property of Dr. Mathew Pittinsky, a Scottsdale Unified School District Governing Board member
The ritzy home is listed as being worth more than $6million on realty websites
The posts promoting the party have been deleted, but screenshots taken by someone who had seen the promotions were shared online by Scottsdale Unites for Educational Integrity, a local student-parent organization.
The screenshots show that someone was charging $5 per person for entry to the rager, which was sold as a ‘rave party.’ It also said ‘Addy drops 7pm.’
Addy is an abbreviation for address, implying that the location of Pittinsky’s home was indeed shared widely.
The listed hours were 8pm until ‘GTFO,’ which stands for ‘get the f**k out.’ The end of the promotion said ‘BYOE,’ which stands for ‘bring your own everything.’
Neighbors described the party as out of control, with the high schoolers either ‘drunk’ or ‘acting drunk.’
‘There were girls twerking and not a lot of clothes on. We saw cans, beer cans on the road, police cars,’ said one neighbor.
After police arrived, they quickly dispersed the crowd and sent the teens home. When questioned, the youngsters denied bringing or consuming any alcohol.
Other screenshots of party updates that were circulated on social media after the party was dispersed read, ‘Got shut down sorry everybody,’ and ‘Can’t have s**t in AZ.’
Pittinsky (center) has served on the Scottsdale Unified School District Governing Board for about one year. The other people in this photo are not board members
A screenshot of a promotion for the party was shared by Scottsdale Unites for Educational Integrity, a local student-parent organization that was left outraged by the rager
Further screenshots shared by the student parent group show updates that were circulated after the party was shut down
School district leaders said the party occurred on private property, so they were uninvolved and not in a position to comment.
No one is facing any charges for the party or alleged underage drinking.
Pittinsky said that he felt the situation was distorted and weaponized against him due to his position on the school board.
Many parents of students in the school district, as well as Scottsdale Unites for Educational Integrity, have found the board member’s response unsatisfactory and have been calling for his resignation since the party.
The student parent organization posted on Facebook as recently as Wednesday about the incident, asking parents who feel that Pittinsky should resign to email the school board.
At a public conference with the board, a local parent addressed Pittinsky and said: ‘Hosting, permitting or failing to prevent an environment in which underage drinking and medical emergencies could occur is deeply troubling.
Outraged parents have been calling for Pittinsky’s resignation, with some pointing out that he is the CEO of a software company that sells services to the school district, which they interpret as a potential conflict of interest
‘Your actions suggest disregard for the safety and well-being of the very students you are sworn to serve. The community deserves a full and transparent investigation into this incident.
‘Parents and taxpayers must know the truth. Given the seriousness of this matter, your ability to continue serving on the board is now in question. You should acknowledge this lapse in judgment, offer [sic] sincere apology and immediately resign your position.’
The parent also highlighted the fact that Pittinsky’s own child does not attend one of the district’s public high schools, and is instead enrolled in a private catholic school, where Pittinsky also serves on the board.
A similar concern has been raised by Scottsdale Unites for Educational Integrity, which pointed out that the dual board member is the CEO of Parchment, a software company that provides educational services, including to the Scottsdale Unified School District.
The student parent organization asked whether that could be considered a ‘conflict of interest.’