The Tribune

By KHRISNA VIRGIL kvirgil@tribunemedia.net THE Ministry of Education is yet again investigating one of its male teachers on claims of alleged sexual misconduct with a student. He is the seventh teacher to be accused of sexually inappropriate behaviour since the Ministry established its Sexual Complaints Unit in 2009, specifically to investigate and uncover child abuse. Yesterday, ministry officials released a statement confirming that a probe immediately began into the allegations that involve a male teacher from an Abaco high school. They did not give a date or time of the allegations. The teacher has since been placed on administrative leave as police continue their investigations, the release said. A team of Ministry officials were also dispatched to the island yesterday morning. While education officials remained tightlipped up to press time, The Tribune has learned that a female student of Haitian descent reported that she and the teacher had engaged in sexual acts. The Tribune has also learned that the student also claims to still have text messages to prove an continuing relationship between them. Since 2009, several cases of alleged sexual misconduct involving public school teachers or support staff with students of various ages have been investigated by the Complaints Unit. Ultimately six men have been tried before the courts. A case in January of this year saw Trinidadian teacher Andre Birbal, 48, found guilty and convicted in the Supreme Court of having unnatural sexual intercourse with two of his former students at the Eight Mile Rock High School in Grand Bahama. Former Governor's Harbour High School, Eleuthera teacher Orville Clarke, 37, was remanded to Sandilands Rehabilitation Centre in 2010 after he was accused of assaulting several female students months before his arraignment. During that same year, two teachers in Freeport were placed on leave pending the findings of an investigation into student-teacher sex allegations. Also in 2010, Oswald Poitier, a volunteer music teacher at the North Andros High School was told that he would stand trial for allegedly having sex with two female students. In 2009, 55-year-old John Ingraham, a former Jack Hayward High School teacher was charged in the Magistrate's court with having sex with a 12-year-old girl.