A New Smyrna Beach High School employee has been kept off campus since the start of the new school year while police investigate allegations of inappropriate online contact with someone believed to be a minor. No charges have been filed, and the employee has not been publicly identified as the investigation continues.
How the Investigation Started
According to FOX 35 Orlando, the New Smyrna Beach Police Department was contacted on August 7 about the employee's online behavior after a video related to the allegations surfaced online, according to officials. Police launched their investigation the same day, and the employee was accused of having inappropriate online contact with an individual believed to be a minor, according to police. The employee has not been on campus since the school year began, and formal charges have not been filed.
The station's report does not name the employee, and Hoodline is not aware of any additional public identification at this stage. Volusia County Schools' Office of Professional Standards routinely investigates staff misconduct allegations and enforces background screening under the Jessica Lunsford Act, and the district typically removes employees from student contact while investigations are active, per the district's own policy documentation.
A Pattern of Cases at the Same Campus
This is not the first time New Smyrna Beach High School has faced scrutiny over staff conduct involving students. In October 2021, former math teacher and coach Megan Parris was sentenced to 30 months in prison after pleading guilty to unlawful sexual activity with a 16-year-old student, a case that originated in March 2019 when another student reported the relationship to school officials, according to WKMG.
More recently, the district disclosed in August 2026 that a former contracted school nurse at the same high school, Joshua Leggett, died by suicide while facing an active arrest warrant after failing to appear in court on charges including indecent touching of a minor student, according to WNDB. Leggett had initially been arrested in December 2024 by Ormond Beach police after allegedly meeting a minor student off campus.
Broader Enforcement Across Volusia County
Other Volusia County Schools campuses have seen similar cases in the past two years. In January 2025, the Volusia Sheriff's Office arrested a former reading teacher at Taylor Middle High School in Pierson on felony charges of sexual conduct with an 18-year-old student, following an internal district probe and a review of cell phone evidence; the teacher was escorted off campus during the investigation. In March 2025, a 51-year-old paraprofessional at Horizon Elementary School in Port Orange was arrested following allegations of inappropriate interactions with a minor, and school officials confirmed the employee was immediately separated from student access, per WKMG.
State rules add another layer of oversight for cases like these. Under Florida Administrative Code Rule 6A-10.081, educators are required to protect student health, safety, and welfare, and violations can lead to mandatory certificate revocation or suspension by the Florida Department of Education. Florida's public records law also makes electronic communications created or received by Volusia County Schools employees, including emails and district network activity, subject to public inspection, which helps explain why digital footprints are routinely reviewed during these kinds of probes. State regulations further require school personnel to report known or suspected child abuse or illegal contact to the Florida Department of Children and Families abuse hotline, with criminal penalties possible for failing to do so.
A High-Performing Campus Under Scrutiny
The investigation lands at a school that has otherwise posted strong academic numbers. New Smyrna Beach High School achieved a 98.6% graduation rate for the 2024–2025 academic year, well above the state average of 92.2%, Volusia County Schools announced in January, with the district as a whole reaching its highest recorded graduation rate of 95.6%. The school serves roughly 1,687 students in grades 9 through 12 with a student-to-teacher ratio of 24 to 1, according to Niche.
For now, the case remains under investigation, with no charges filed and no public confirmation of the employee's identity. Hoodline will update this story as New Smyrna Beach police release further information.
