11-04-2025
Mentor Public Schools teacher under investigation for alleged incident with student
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MENTOR, Ohio (WJW) — A now-former Mentor Public Schools teacher is under investigation for an alleged incident involving a high school student.
The teacher, who has not been identified, is 'no longer employed by the district,' according to a Friday news release from the city.
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The school district contacted police on April 3 in regard to an 'incident involving a teacher and a student,' reads the release.
Schools Superintendent Craig Heath characterized the incident as 'serious misconduct' in a district-wide letter sent Thursday evening:
Dear parents/guardians and staff,
Unfortunately, I am writing to inform you that one of our teachers is being investigated in regard to allegations of serious misconduct with a high school student. The teacher is no longer employed by the district and has been instructed not to have any contact with our students and staff pending the outcome of the legal process. While we cannot discuss the specifics of the investigation at this time, we can assure you we are taking the allegations very seriously. When we learned of these allegations, we acted swiftly. We removed the teacher from duty and contacted local law enforcement, Lake County Job and Family Services and the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce. We are working in full cooperation with investigators from the Lake County Sheriff's Office and the student's family to maintain the student's privacy.
Please know, we already directly contacted the parents and guardians of any students who were in this teacher's class to make them aware right away. You are receiving this information as a districtwide notice. Our communication with the school community has been conducted in cooperation with law enforcement's investigation.
Keeping our students safe continues to be a top priority and we will do everything we can to protect them and encourage them to report concerns at any time. At this time, no charges have been filed, and because there is an ongoing investigation, any further information about this case would come from law enforcement officials.
Craig Heath, superintendent of Mentor Public Schools
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Mentor police and the Lake County Sheriff's Office have been investigating the case since then.
Authorities are not sharing any other information, 'due to the severity of the allegations' and to protect the student's identity, reads the release.
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