Education

Sex, Schools, and Videotape

May 05, 2006 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

A high school teacher in Paducah, Kentucky, was relieved of her employment after school administrators discovered she appeared in an adult movie more than 10 years ago. Tericka Dye, a science teacher and volleyball coach at Paducah’s Reidland High School, said she deeply regrets having made the film, explaining she was broke and suffering from untreated bipolar disorder at the time. All the same, McCracken County Schools Superintendent Tim Heller told her in a letter that her “presence in the classroom would cause a disruption to the educational process,” particularly for “students who viewed the video or know about it.” (And who doesn’t now?) Not everyone agrees, though. A lawyer hired by the Kentucky Education Association said the termination may be challenged, and some students and parents held an impromptu rally in support of Dye this week. “She’s not the person she was 10 years ago,” said one sympathetic parent. “We’ve all done things that we regret, except hers is on tape.”

A version of this news article first appeared in the Web Watch blog.

Events

Teaching Profession K-12 Essentials Forum Supporting the New K-12 Workforce: What Teachers Need to Stay at School
 Join this free virtual event to discover what teachers say they need to feel supported to stay in classrooms for the long haul.
College & Workforce Readiness K-12 Essentials Forum Career and Technical Education Takes Its Next Big Step
Join this free virtual event to hear creative approaches to modernize CTE programs and navigate the shift away from a near-exclusive focus on "college preparedness."

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Education Opinion The Education Wisdom Our Readers Keep Revisiting: Top 10
These opinion blog posts and essays have made a lasting impression on readers.
1 min read
Trendy halftone collage cutout elements. Laptop, rising arrow chart, gears, handshake, watch, magnifier. Idea, teamwork, brainstorming and success concept Modern retro vector illustration
Cristina Gaidau/iStock
Education Opinion The Opinions EdWeek Readers Care About: The Year’s 10 Most-Read
The opinion content readers visited most in 2025.
2 min read
Collage of the illustrations form the top 4 most read opinion essays of 2025.
Education Week + Getty Images
Education Quiz Did You Follow This Week’s Education News? Take This Quiz
Test your knowledge on the latest news and trends in education.
1 min read
Education Quiz How Did the SNAP Lapse Affect Schools? Take This Weekly Quiz
Test your knowledge on the latest news and trends in education.
1 min read