-
The final Terrific Tuesday was held at Rhoads Memorial Library with a “visit” to Egypt. Spencer Acker read a book to attendees, built pyramids out of cups, enjoyed dole whip cups for snacks. Terrific Tuesday was led by Felice Acker, Castro County Extension Agent and brought activities to local youth throughout the summer with the assistance of teen helpers.
As reports, arrests and convictions continue, many Texas parents have grown concerned about the public education system sexualizing children and exposing students to sex-related topics and explicit material, and just as disturbing is the string of school employees charged with sex crimes and inappropriate behavior against students.
While these individuals may represent a small fraction of Texas educators, it represents the challenge schools face in protecting children from sexual predators.
In December 2022 alone, there were numerous school staff accused and arrested, with the outcomes trickling in.
A former teacher from the Hale Center ISD who was accused of an improper student/ teacher relationship was last week sentenced to 27 months in federal prison, according to court documents. Amy Gilly, 46, was initially arrested by the Hale County Sheriff’s Offi ce in December 2022. She pleaded guilty in March to Transfer of Obscene Material to a minor.
An employee with the Wilson Independent School District in Lynn County, William Ray Palmer III, was also indicted on charges of improper relationship between educator and student, as well as indecency with a child by contact and indecency with a child by exposure,” according to a Lynn County Sheriff ’s Office press release.
A Seagraves superintendent, Joshua Neil Goen, 43, who was under investigation for Invasive Visual Recording shot and killed himself while the case was still pending. He had been accused of making recordings in the girls’ dressing room. Players discovered the recorder and reported it.
The list goes on for that single month.
Comal ISD teacher Emily Anderson, 35, pleaded guilty to having sex with a 15-yearold student in a biology classroom closet.
Grand Prairie ISD teacher and football coach Kenrick Burns, 28, was arrested for having an “intimate relationship” with an 18-year-old female student.
China Spring ISD teacher and girls’ sports coach Keneth Lamadrid, 41, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor prostitution charge, after being arrested last year on felony charges for soliciting two females for sex—one a 16-year-old girl.
Other Texas educators accused or convicted of sex crimes against children in the past year: Prosper ISD bus driver Frank Paniagua, 61, was arrested in May and charged with sexually molesting two elementary school sisters for almost an entire school year. The sex-abuse charges were covered up until the girls’ family sued the district in August for negligence.
Irving ISD elementary school teacher Victor Moreno, 28, was arrested in July and August for improper relationships with students. He was charged with continuous sexual abuse of a 7-year-old girl and sexual assault of a 13-year-old girl.
Frisco ISD physical education aide Ruben Bustillos, 60, was fired in May and arrested for showing “harmful material” to minors.
Keller ISD middle school band director Jedidiah Maus, 36, was charged in March with multiple felony counts of indecency with a child for acts spanning several years.
Allen ISD middle school teacher Anthony Mattei, 59, was arrested in August and charged with two counts of indecency with a child by sexual contact. Mattei had faced allegations of misconduct involving a student in April but had been allowed to return to the classroom.
Tomball ISD intermediate schoolteacher Marka Bodine, 32, admitted she had a threeyear sexual relationship with a student starting when he was just 13.
Mesquite ISD teacher’s aide Bryan Garcia, 22, was arrested in September and charged with two counts of sexual assault of a child and one count of indecency with a child.
Richardson ISD teacher Jason Delezen, 40, was arrested in October and charged with having an inappropriate relationship with a minor while teaching in Texarkana.
Lovejoy ISD teacher Ray Cooper was allowed to resign after he was caught sending sexually suggestive text messages to a 17-year-old male student.
Garland ISD teacher Christian Ayala, 28, was let go in July after a sting video caught him trying to meet a 14-yearold boy for sex.
Allen ISD Foundation board member Neil Riddick, 61, resigned in November af- -ter he was caught on a sting video trying to meet a 14-year-old boy for sex.
Under Texas law, it’s a crime for any public or private school employee to engage in sexual contact with a student, and for any adult to solicit a minor for sexual activity using the internet or other electronic messaging.
An improper relationship between an educator and a student is a second-degree felony.
Online solicitation of a minor is a third-degree felony; if the minor is younger than 14 years of age, the crime is a second-degree felony.
The criminal misconduct also violates the Texas Educators’ Code of Ethics, which says educators “shall not solicit or engage in sexual conduct or a romantic relationship with a student or minor” and also prohibits “inappropriate communications” between educators and students or minors.
Ethics violations are grounds for educators to lose their state teaching certification.
Texas laws to prevent “passing the trash” obligate school superintendents to report inappropriate student-teacher relationships to the Texas Education Agency and State Board for Educator Certification, so offenders can’t simply move to other districts.
The public can check any Texas educator’s SBEC certificate status via the TEA website.