Police: Teacher, student used pot

Eugene, Oregon Tegister-Guard ^ | June 19, 2002 | REBECCA NOLAN

[tdadams]

Police: Teacher, student used pot

By REBECCA NOLAN 
The Register-Guard

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A Bethel School District teacher resigned last week after it was discovered that she had smoked marijuana with a 14-year-old student at her home.

Terri Elizabeth McCracken, 34, of Springfield, had taught seventh grade at the district's Meadow View School for two years. The district is in northwest Eugene.

Eugene police charged McCracken on June 11 with one misdemeanor count of endangering the welfare of a minor. She was given a citation and released.

When school district officials confronted her with the allegations, she resigned immediately, district spokesman Craig Hawkins said.

McCracken did not return a message a reporter left on her answering machine Tuesday seeking comment on the charges.

Police allege that McCracken invited a 14-year-old male student from her class to her Springfield home twice between April 6 and April 15, Eugene police Sgt. Scott McKee said.

The teacher allegedly provided a pipe and some marijuana and the two smoked it together, McKee said.

"There's a clear ethical issue here," McKee said. "This kid is being supplied an illegal substance by a trusted adult teacher."

A school resource officer heard about the incident and referred the case to the police department's Rapid Deployment Unit, which conducted the investigation.

Both the student and teacher confirmed that the allegations were true, McKee said.

Hawkins said the district will report the incident to the state Teacher Standards and Practices Commission, which licenses Oregon teachers. The commission could decide to revoke McCracken's teaching license.

While teaching at Creswell Middle School in 2000, McCracken and two other teachers were named Oregon Innovators in Education for developing an environmental science curriculum that incorporated language arts, science and social studies skills.

[tdadams]

More tales of your tax dollars hard at work to corrupt the next generation.

[mad puppy]

Both the student and teacher confirmed that the allegations were true

How unbelievable stupid. Did this 'teacher' really think that a 14 year old kid was going to smoke pot with a teacher and not tell someone? Perhaps a new catagory of the Darwin awards should be created for complete career destruction. Moron.

[tdadams]

Perhaps a new catagory of the Darwin awards should be created for complete career destruction.

Well, that's a good suggestion. I have this week's winner. It's TN state representative Keith Westmoreland.

He would qualify for both the new, career-killing Darwin, as well as the traditional Darwin for offing yourself.

[vin-one]

un believable, that a teacher, would even have a kid over to the house these days,
and then on top of that to actualy partake of any of the following
smoke cigs, mj, drink beer, or have sex.
this lady is teaching todays youth, scary thought. integeligence must not be a requirement to teach today

[homeschool mama]

The kid is 14 years old and still in 7th grade?! Aren't most 7th graders 12? Hmmm

The teacher is a fool through and through.

[homeschool mama]

**integeligence (sp: intelligence) must not be a requirement to teach today **

That's an understatement. A degree in education is one of the easiest to earn.

[3catsanadog]

There appears to be alot of female teachers charged with indecent behavior with minors lately.

[tdadams]

What's really unsettling is how common these sordid teacher-student liaisons have become. The world's gone mad. Years ago it was shocking and unheard of when Mary Kay LeTourneau became pregnant with her 13 year old student. All of a sudden it seems de rigueur for female public school teachers to have drugs and sex flings with their 13-15 year old male students.

[dmz]

do you have one, or is that just your opinion?

[vin-one]

the fine senator from TN. un freaken bleieveable

[vin-one]

spell checker is not one of my srong(strong) points

[Veggie Todd]

There appears to be alot of female teachers charged with indecent behavior with minors lately.

Yeah, where the hell were they 25 years ago?

[3catsanadog]

Ooooh, naughty!

[Frank Grimes]

I had no idea he killed himself! Wow, he must have felt genuine shame that he did something to embarass himself, his family, and his constituents. Too bad Clintigula never feels any shame for doing the same things.

[homeschool mama]

I have a business degree. It was well known 22 years ago that education majors had it easy. It's still well known. Psych was another slider..

Do you have an Ed degree?

[homeschool mama]

*what's right is wrong what's wrong is right*

[tdadams]

Clintigula just had everyone else killed.