BOISE, Idaho (CBS2) — Idaho Education News is reporting Idaho's Professional Standards Commission (PSC) took action against six people Thursday and Friday for violating the state's code of ethics for public educators.
Three educators lost their teaching certificates. One received an indefinite suspension, and two received letters of reprimand.
Sarai McCormick was a teacher at Priest River Lamanna High School. She was convicted in February of sexually abusing a minor under 16.
According to the Bonner County Daily Bee, McCormick brought alcohol to a Halloween party in October, where current and former students were present. She was visibly intoxicated when she arrived.
McCormick, then 37, was caught in the backseat of her car with a 15-year-old student who was also attending the party.
McCormick was sentenced to ten years in prison for the assault, and the PSC took action Thursday to revoke McCormick's teaching certificate, an automatic penalty for anyone found guilty of a felony child sex abuse charge.
Gwendalyn Buthman from Idaho Virtual Academy was convicted of felony injury to a child with infliction of great bodily injury and misdemeanor injury to a child in June 2022
According to a report from the Idaho Press, the Kuna couple isolated their daughter from her siblings, forced her to sleep without bedding and fed her exclusively vegetable protein powder.
During the trial, the victim testified that she had been malnourished, locked in a bathroom and forced to stand outside in the cold with nothing but a diaper. In 2017, the victim, then five years old, went into cardiac arrest due to the abuse. The Buthmans' abuse occurred for three years — the victim was three to six years old.
The PSC voted to permanently revoke Buthman's teaching certificate, an automatic penalty for anyone guilty of felony injury to a child.
Robert Kiser from Middleton School District pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor harassment charge in an Oregon court.
The charge came after Kiser, a teacher and football coach, arrived at a football camp at Eastern Oregon University under the influence of "some substance," according to the complaint. He was slurring his words and having difficulty walking.
He put one player in a wrist lock, struck at least one student in the groin and referred to players by several vulgarities, including a derogatory, anti-gay slur.
The PSC voted Friday to issue Kiser a letter of reprimand. He must take an approved ethics course and boundaries course within one year.
Daniel Durham from the Mountain Home School District was convicted of felony aggravated assault in November 2022. He was arrested on a lewd conduct charge with a minor under 16 for a crime between October and December 2018.
The PSC permanently revoked Durham's teaching certificate Thursday, an automatic penalty for anyone found guilty of felony aggravated assault.
The PSC took action Thursday against Brent Schindlerfrom the Teton County School District for lying on two teaching certificate applications and one alternative authorization application.
Schindler's license to practice law in Michigan was revoked in 2006 after professional misconduct resulted in disciplinary action. In 2007, he was disbarred in California due to the incident in Michigan.
When Schindler applied for a teaching certificate in Idaho in 2018, he wrote he surrendered his law certificate when he closed his practice and did not answer whether disciplinary action was taken against a professional license or certificate or whether he gave up a license or certificate to avoid disciplinary action.
Schindler marked 'No' to both questions on his 2020 teaching certificate application and his 2022 application for emergency authorization.
The PSC indefinitely suspended Schindler's certificates Thursday.
James Maloney from the Caldwell School District resigned seven days after signing his contract. According to Idaho's code of ethics for educators, exiting a contract is a punishable offense.
The PSC voted Thursday to issue Maloney a letter of reprimand.
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