ABSS Joint Media Conference with Alamance County Sheriff
Sheriff Terry Johnson and ABSS Superintendent Dr. Dain Butler addressed the community and media today regarding the arrest of a Southern Alamance Middle School teacher on felony charges of Indecent Liberties with students.
During the course of the investigation, SVU Detectives were able to establish probable cause to charge Ivan Danilo Ardila Perez with two counts of Indecent Liberties with a Student and two counts of Indecent Liberties with a Child.
On the evening of Wednesday April 26, 2023, Mr. Ardila-Perez was arrested and transported to the Alamance County Detention Center.
On Thursday, April 27, 2023, five more students came forward and spoke with Detectives regarding their interactions with this teacher. The students range in age from 11 to 13 years old.
Video of the event is available here: https://www.facebook.com/Alama...
Dr. Butler’s Remarks at the Media Conference:
As Sheriff Johnson stated, we stand here with him and his department today because this is a serious matter that deserves all of our attention and we want our families and this community to know that we are united in working together.
The arrest of one of our teachers has brought shame and embarrassment to our entire school community. As I said at the beginning of the school year, I have zero tolerance for misbehavior by our students in the classroom and the same goes for our staff. This WILL NOT BE Tolerated..not on my watch.
However, we also want to emphasize that the actions of ONE individual do not reflect the values of our school District as a whole. We have great teachers, staff, and administrators who work tirelessly to help our students achieve great things and become successful.
At Alamance-Burlington Schools, we are committed to providing a safe and secure environment for our students to learn and grow, and this kind of behavior is simply unacceptable.
We want to reassure our families that we take our responsibility to protect our students and staff seriously.
We have strict policies and procedures in place to ensure that all of our teachers are properly vetted before they are allowed to work with our students.
For many years we have offered Global Studies. Part of that program is to bring in teachers from other counties. They too go through a vetting process.
However, even with these measures in place, we know that no system is foolproof.
Sometimes, despite our best efforts, employees are individuals with their own motives and choices.
I think what’s important to note is that, as Sheriff Johnson said, we acted swiftly and are cooperating fully with The Alamance County Sheriff's Office in their investigation, and we will take any necessary steps to ensure that justice is served.
Employment Explanation:
Many have questioned how it works when an employee is accused and charged. I want to address that:
We first investigate all allegations. If there are findings the individual is immediately placed on paid leave pending further investigation. That sometimes involves interviewing other staff members, administrators and so forth. This removed that individual from the school building.
Finally a recommendation is made to our Board of Education at their monthly meeting to terminate. So we do have a process in place that follows state policy.
At this time, this individual is suspended WITHOUT Pay with a recommendation to our Board of Education for dismissal. We have a work session next Tuesday, May 9th.
Victims:
I want to take a moment to talk about our victims, who are OUR students, and offer my deepest apologies for the pain, trauma and suffering that you have experienced as a result of the actions of ONE person. Abuse is never acceptable, and it is never the fault of the victim. It is a terrible violation of trust.
Once again, despite our best efforts people choose to do the wrong thing and when we’re made aware, we investigate those concerns.
I want our ABSS families to know….At any time, at any school, please know that your child can talk with their counselor should they have concerns about a staff member or anything else going on in their lives.
Our counseling staff is always ready to support them. Additionally we want you to know you can always reach out to our school-based administrators or Central Services should you have concerns.
If you see something or hear something that even in the slightest seems out of place…alert us. It is important that we work together as a community to ensure the safety and well-being of all our students at all times.
Thank you!