A Bryan County, Georgia grand jury indicted former Cypress Christian School teacher and coach Jared Barber on three criminal counts on August 18, accusing him of sending sexually explicit messages to a former student who now lives in Georgia. The alleged communications, which reportedly included conversations about the child's penis size, masturbation and erections, are said to have occurred between August 2024 and April 2026.
Barber was fired from the Cypress, Texas school in April after administrators discovered inappropriate electronic communications with a minor, according to Chron. Per the bill of indictment, Barber allegedly used an electronic device to persuade and induce the child to engage in a sexual offense. He now faces one count of felony grooming of a minor, one count of felony criminal attempt to commit grooming of a minor, and one misdemeanor count of electronically furnishing obscene material to minors.
Cypress Christian School President Dr. Jeff Potts told families in an April 30 letter that administrators discovered TikTok communications on April 29, ordered Barber to return immediately from an off-campus trip, placed him on administrative leave, notified child-protection authorities, and terminated him upon his return, according to Texas Scorecard. Barber had joined the K-12 private Christian school in 2023.
A Coaching Career Spanning Three States
Before Cypress Christian, Barber built a nine-year career moving between private Christian schools in Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi. He served as the former head football coach at Lee Academy in Mississippi from 2019 to 2020 and at Riverdale Academy in Louisiana in 2018, and worked as a teacher and football coach at Fort Worth Christian School from 2020 to 2023. The same reporting notes he also had stints at Dallas Christian School and Grapevine Faith Christian School earlier in his career.
Texas Scorecard's Erin Anderson reported that Barber was indicted in Georgia on three counts of sexually grooming a former Cypress Christian School student. The outlet has also reported that Barber does not hold a Texas teaching certificate, which placed him outside public educator credentialing databases and Texas Education Agency oversight while employed at the private school.
Why Georgia, Not Texas, Is Prosecuting
Because the alleged victim now lives in Georgia, prosecutors there are relying on Georgia Code § 16-12-100.5, which permits the state to exercise extraterritorial jurisdiction over electronic grooming committed by an out-of-state resident when the minor victim resides within Georgia. The statute, enacted under House Bill 993, makes grooming a minor via electronic devices or text messages by an adult at least 48 months older than the victim a felony punishable by one to five years in prison. District Attorney Billy J. Nelson, Jr. of the Atlantic Judicial Circuit is prosecuting the case, which was formally charged through Bryan County Superior Court under indictment No. 2026-R-221.
The case highlights a regulatory gap that has drawn scrutiny in Texas: private Christian schools in the state are not bound by state educator certification mandates, meaning employees like Barber can move between campuses without appearing in state credentialing systems. The Texas Education Agency's late summer 2026 quarterly disciplinary report found that sexual misconduct accounted for more than 100 credential sanction actions against Texas educators, though that oversight applies primarily to certified public-school staff.
School Response and Unrelated Personnel Matter
Following Barber's indictment, Cypress Christian School's Board of Directors announced an internal review to evaluate safeguards, reporting procedures, staff training and accountability protocols across the school. Cypress Christian, founded in 1978, is an accredited, non-denominational K-12 school serving roughly 830 students. The school could not be reached for further comment as of Monday, according to Chron.
Separately, Kris Hogan, the school's director of culture and former athletic director and head football coach, is on paid administrative leave. According to Anderson, Hogan's leave is not connected to Barber's firing or subsequent indictment.
Broader Pattern in Texas Educator Misconduct
Barber's case follows other recent Texas educator misconduct prosecutions. Under Texas Senate Bill 571, enacted in 2025, school administrators face state-jail felony liability for intentionally failing to report misconduct allegations, and the state Education Commissioner can immediately place arrested educators on the state Do Not Hire Registry, a reform Hoodline previously reported on in connection with a Beaumont JROTC instructor case. Hoodline has also covered a Rockport teacher's indictment on felony counts and a Houston-area wrestling coach's resignation amid a separate grooming scandal, part of a pattern of digital grooming cases surfacing across Texas schools this year.
It remains unclear whether law enforcement in Georgia or Texas has taken Barber into custody, and whether the other Christian schools where he previously worked in Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi are reviewing past student interactions.
