Haylie Smart is a former teacher in Oklahoma who is accused of having a sexual relationship with a student.
Smart, who taught at Oologah High School, is 29-years-old. She’s but the latest in a string of female educational professionals throughout the United States to be accused of inappropriate relationships with students. You can see photos and examples of others later in this story.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. Haylie Smart, a Former High School Teacher, Turned Herself in to Authorities
Haylie Smart
The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation tweeted about the case, saying that Haylie Smart turned herself in.
“Former Oologah high school teacher Haylie Smart turned herself in yesterday after a warrant was issued for her arrest. Smart is accused of having a sexual relationship with a male student during the 2017-18 school year. Smart posted a $25,000 bond,” the organization wrote.
2. Smart Is Accused of Having Sex With the Boy During a Teacher Walkout
Haylie Smart
The student was 17-years-old at the time of the contact, authorities allege. According to 6 on the Scene, authorities were allegedly told “the two were openly affectionate at the school in front of others.”
They were accused of meeting at the teacher’s home during a teacher walkout in April 2018 and of having sexual intercourse in Smart’s classroom several times, the television station reported authorities allege.
According to the television station, the evidence includes phone calls and Smart’s alleged confiding to a friend.
3. Smart Is a Religious High School English Teacher Working Toward Being a Novelist
Before she found herself behind bars, Smart expressed dreams toward becoming a novelist.
“I’m a writer, mostly fiction, and a high school English teacher. I’m currently working towards being a novelist, to leave teaching. And I love Jesus!” she wrote on her Twitter page. Her page says she is from Claremore, Oklahoma.
Smart’s Facebook page has been deleted. Her Twitter page cover photo is a quote from Mark Twain that reads, “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do.”
Her page focuses on describing various products such as scented soap, perfume spray, and a candied yams recipe. On Instagram, she wrote, “As a business owner and fiction writer, I can always be found with a book at arm’s length. I live in Oklahoma with my Aussie, Reece.”
4. Smart Is No Longer Working for the School District
Smart stopped being a teacher with the school district in May.
In a statement, the district said, “The top priority of the Oologah-Talala School District is the health, safety and security of our students and staff. The School District previously employed Haylie Smart as a High School teacher. Ms. Smart’s employment ended on May 29, 2018. The Oologah-School District will not make any comment regarding Ms. Smart’s previous employment as personnel matters are confidential. Moreover, the School District has no comment regarding any criminal matters regarding Ms. Smart.”
5. Multiple Educational Workers in the United States Have Ended Up in Trouble With the Law for Alleged Sex Offenses
Female teachers accused of sex crimes in the U.S.
Female teachers or educational professionals ending up in mugshots has become a too common phenomenon over the past few years. Kayla Sprinkles was one of the latest. Haley Reed, a high school choir director, was accused in the rape of a student. Miranda Pauley, a former biology teacher, was accused of taking indecent liberties with a minor.
Cassandra White, an English teacher in Oklahoma, was even accused of taking out a marriage license with a teenage boy. Hunter Day, an Oklahoma teacher, was accused of sending nude photos to a student. Among other recent cases: Loryn Barclay, a former substitute teacher at a Missouri High School, was accused of having sexual contact multiple times with a 17-year-old boy. Shawnetta Reece, a gym teacher from Georgia, was accused of having an inappropriate relationship with a 15-year-old boy.
Tracy Miller, a West Virginia teacher, was accused of sending nude photos to students. Nataly Lopez, a 27-year-old former substitute teacher at a middle school in New Jersey, was accused of having sexual contact with a student. Lindsey Jarvis, a 27-year-old middle school teacher’s aide, was accused of the rape and sodomy of a student who was under the age of 16. Jarvis was arrested in Fayette County, Kentucky, on June 16. Then there’s Laura Ramos. She is a 31-year-old Connecticut high school teacher who is accused of having sex with a special education student. And there’s Tiffany Geliga.