The Wisconsin high school official who got shoved aside by the father of a graduating senior is speaking out on the incident ... saying an apology here is too little, too late.
Superintendent Rainey Briggs -- who was onstage at Baraboo High during the now-infamous graduation ceremony -- told media outlets attorneys for Matthew Eddy contacted him Monday with an informal apology from the dad ... but it sounds like it didn't go over well.
Briggs told Daily Mail, "An apology just doesn't make things go away." He says Eddy caused "a lot of harm" by rushing the stage and physically preventing Briggs from shaking his daughter's hand.
As we reported ... video shows Eddy waiting near the stage for his daughter to walk across before bolting over to Briggs and shoving him away as his daughter approached with her diploma.
At first, some believed race was a factor here -- because Briggs is Black and Eddy is white -- but there's been no evidence of that thus far, and Eddy told cops his beef with Briggs was because he disliked Briggs over past issues involving the school and his kid.
Briggs says he's unsure if his race was a factor now that the dust has settled ... telling NBC News and DM that's a question for Eddy, though Briggs adds -- the optics don't look good.
Remember ... Briggs ended up getting a temporary restraining order against Eddy, and the father has also been charged with disorderly conduct as a result of all this.
The restraining order bars Eddy from contacting Briggs directly ... so he can't legally apologize even if wanted ... but it sounds like there's no use now.