Man Accused Of Child Rape Is A NH Community College Instructor

CONCORD, NH — A man in Bow accused of rape is an employee at a community college, the state of New Hampshire has confirmed — but officials will not comment on whether he is still in a classroom with young adults.

Brian G. Ellis, 45, of Bow was arrested on Feb. 23 on two felony counts of aggravated felonious sexual assault-pattern after a multi-month investigation into an allegation that he had repeated sexual encounters with a boy that he met online beginning in August 2017.

The boy accused Ellis of about six encounters, mostly in vehicles, but once at a home on Bow Bog Road, that the boy later assisted an investigator in finding. Emails and vehicles at the home as well as division of motor vehicle records from both New Hampshire and Massachusetts, connected Bow police to Ellis, according to an affidavit.

After being arrested, Ellis was held on preventative detention but his bail was approved on Feb. 25. He had an evidentiary hearing on March 1 and is due back in Merrimack County Superior Court for a dispositional conference hearing on May 11.

Ellis is employed as a faculty member at Lakes Region Community College where he is an instructor in the automotive technology program. Larissa Baia, the president of the school, confirmed he "is" employed but did not return an email about his teaching status.

Shannon Reid, the executive director of government affairs and communications for the Community College System of NH, said Ellis had been employed at the school for about two and half years and earned around $53,000 annually.

"Further information is not available as the college handles all personnel matters confidentially," Reid said.

A request to interview Dr. Susan Huard, the interim chancellor for the community college system, about whether Ellis was placed on leave or why the system was not confirming he was still being allowed to teach, given the level of the charges, was rejected.

The status of Ellis' employment though is of concern for the New Hampshire Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence.

Alyssa Dandrea, a community relations specialist at the coalition, said sexual offenders often seek positions of authority to gain access to children and also sign onto jobs or volunteer work that can elevate their credibility within their communities and, therefore, gain them the trust of peers. They do this, she said, with the hope that communities will doubt any victim who comes forward to report abuse.

"When a teacher has been accused of such a heinous crime as sexual assault, it can be traumatic for their students and their peers because they trusted this individual," Dandrea said. "Too often, those who prey on children also have multiple victims. For those reasons, it is critical that school administrators promptly and proactively notify their communities if one of their employees or volunteers has been arrested."

This notification, which should be immediate, should provide the community with the facts of the case, an overview of the school's policies related to sexual assault, an update on the employment status of the individual accused of the sexual assault, and information about available supports, Dandrea said. These are all things the Community College System of NH has not addressed in the Ellis case.

"In addition, we encourage schools to work with their local crisis centers to ensure that important resources are provided to students and families who’ve been impacted," she said.

In a follow-up email after Patch posted this story, Reid offered the following: "I can tell you that on Feb. 26, based on information provided to college officials by the police, the college president informed the college of the arrest and indicated that there would be no presence that would create a risk to members of the campus community."

The coalition encourages anyone who has been abused, no matter when the abuse occurred, to seek confidential and compassionate support or information through one of our member programs. Caring advocates are available 24/7 at the coalition’s statewide helpline at 1-800-277-5570.

At post time, Ellis' educator information was still live on the community college website.

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