SLO High School teacher placed on paid leave after students allege inappropriate behavior
A second San Luis Obispo High School teacher has been placed on paid leave amid allegations of misconduct involving students.
The San Luis Coastal Unified School district put Ethan McSwain on paid leave on Dec. 9 after learning of allegations from students on Dec. 7 and 8, according to Superintendent Eric Prater.
McSwain, 27, a former student of the school, had been employed at the district since August 2022 and worked as a math teacher and cross country coach at SLOHS.
Prater said in a statement to The Tribune that he could not comment on the specific allegations because “such situations are considered confidential personnel matters.”
In a note to district parents, Principal Rollin Dickinson said McSwain “may have been engaging in inappropriate conversations and behavior.”
In March, the school district placed SLOHS history teacher and basketball coach Jeffrey Brandow on paid leave after receiving allegations in October 2022 that he’d inappropriately texted with a student. The district moved to terminate Brandow’s employment at the district in August, but Brandow has since appealed that decision.
It’s unclear why the district placed McSwain on paid leave quicker than Brandow as the district did not share further details on the allegations against McSwain.
“As soon as SLCUSD receives allegations of misconduct, SLCUSD initiates an investigation,” Prater wrote in his statement.
Dickinson said in his note to the school community that he was “proud of the students who didn’t hesitate to come forward to our staff to report behavior that they felt crossed a line.”
“It is also important to note that we acted immediately on these reports, as we always do,” Dickinson’s note continued. “I am proud of our administrators and staff for their unhesitating support for our students. They took seriously what our students had to say.”
In response to a Tribune question regarding how the school district plans to address what appears to be repeated inappropriate behavior among its teachers, Prater said the district will train its teachers.
“SLCUSD will train all employees on appropriate adult-student interactions pursuant to board policy,” Prater wrote in his statement. “In addition, SLCUSD has already undertaken training of our administrative team in responding to complaints of employee misconduct.”
This story was originally published December 19, 2023 at 10:01 AM.
