A former school head of department has been banned from applying to teach after multiple allegations from three students, including that he kissed one of them, made sexual comments, talked about losing their virginity, and sent more than 2700 emails.
In a judgment published on Friday, the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal found the teacher had engaged in inappropriate behaviour against the three students, who claimed he kissed one of them, invited them to his property, and touched them in his office and classroom.
He was also found to have possessed on his Department of Education file server inappropriate photos of female students taken at the school’s swimming carnival.
The man, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, was first registered as a teacher in July 1996, and was a head of department between 2013 and 2019 at a Queensland state high school. He was also acting deputy principal in 2018.
His registration was suspended in 2020, and his employment was terminated by the Department of Education in 2021.
During the 2015 June-July school holidays, the teacher met with a grade 10 student – known as Student C in the documents – kissed her and told her she was “very beautiful”. He met with her on more than one occasion, court documents state.
Between 2015 and 2017, he exchanged approximately 2757 emails with the student via school accounts, including inappropriate messages such as “You are such a sweetie”; “Loved the outfit, maybe something different … or less!”; and “You looked beautiful today”.
In July 2017, he wrote: “Sweetheart, just stop all that. Hold on for a couple more days and we will talk.” He also wrote: “I consider myself lucky every time I see you.”
Over the two years, he met with the student outside normal school hours in his office and hugged and kissed her several times. He put his hands under her shirt and his hands down her underwear, the court documents said.
He gave her bottles of perfume, and also a necklace when he visited her at her work.
Between 2016 and 2017, he exchanged sexualised images and videos with the student via email, and by the student giving him a USB drive.
Earlier allegations about the man included that in 2012, he spoke to a then year 9 student in the school hall, and said words to the effect of: “I overheard some year 10 boys saying they wanted to f— you.”
Between 2012 and 2015, he told that student – known in the documents as Student A – “you’re very attractive” on more than one occasion. By 2014, when she was a year 11 student, he stated words to the effect of: “If I was a boy your age, you would be exactly the type of girl I would go for.”
He touched the student on the buttocks on more than one occasion, and hugged her in his office and classroom.
He gave her his personal phone number, and in late 2015 when she was recently graduated, he invited her to his house to give him a gift. Court documents allege he misled the former student by telling her that his wife and children would also be at the residence, but he was alone when she arrived.
Between 2012 and 2015, he was accused of inappropriate behaviour with another student, known in the documents as Student B. The allegations included that he hugged her when she was in year 9 when she was upset after an English class, and on another occasion pressed and held his waist into her waist. On multiple occasions, he touched her on the buttocks.
The teacher talked with Student B about losing her virginity, and said: “You’re really attractive, you don’t realise how attractive you are. I wish there were girls that looked like you when I was at school.”
The allegations also included that in January 2019, he invited her to his house to “catch up”, and – as with Student A – misled her by suggesting other people would be present, but he was alone when she arrived.
During the department’s investigation, the teacher denied many of the allegations.
The tribunal accepted the evidence that Student C was first kissed in mid-2015, when she was 14 years old, and that he possessed on his school computer a sexually explicit video of the student, apparently taken in 2017 when she was 16.
In 2019, he admitted that he had been “excessively involved in a relationship with Student C”, according to the documents.
The emails found that Student C had sent the teacher emails about self harm, which indicated she was vulnerable.
“There is no evidence before us that [the teacher] reported this to an appropriate person, contrary to his obligations,” the judgment read.
The tribunal found the teacher had engaged in inappropriate conduct towards each of the three students, and retained inappropriate images on his work computer.
It said given the teacher’s age and life experience, there was a significant power imbalance between him and the students.
“During the period 2012 to 2019, [he] was a teacher with about 15 or more years of experience, in his 40s, and held a position of seniority, leadership and responsibility as head of department from at least 2013, and acting deputy principal in 2018,” the judgment read.
The tribunal said the teacher had chosen not to substantively engage in the proceeding, and as such, there was little evidence from him that might demonstrate steps taken to address the reasons for his failures to maintain professional boundaries.
“We find that [the teacher] should be prohibited from reapplying for registration or permission to teach indefinitely,” the tribunal said.
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Cloe Read is the crime and court reporter at Brisbane Times.Connect via X or email.
