Teacher Accused Of Student Sexual Contact Hired, Then Removed By N.J. District: Reports

A teacher at a New Jersey middle school has been removed from his classroom pending an investigation into charges he had sexual contact with students while teaching in New York City, officials said.

Capt. James Smith, executive director of security and internal investigations for Paterson schools, ordered Jinwoo Seong’s removal from the classroom pending further investigation, according to The New York Post and nj.com.

Students in New York reported that Seong exposed himself, touched a girl’s breast and engaged in oral sex with a male student, according to the Post report.

Seong was able to secure a job at Don Bosco Technical Academy after New York investigators allegedly recently removed him from the city’s schools because of the allegations, according to The New York Post.

Terry Corallo, executive director of Information Services for the Paterson district, said the district follows established guidelines for hiring which includes criminal background checks.

In this case, she said, this teacher passed the criminal background check, and written references were provided by the teacher.

“However, new information was brought to our attention late last week via the New York Post, so this is now being fully investigated,” she said in a statement. “In the meantime, as the safety of our students is our top priority, this teacher was assigned to report to the district office (as of last Friday) pending the outcome of a state and internal investigation.

Paterson had approved an application to allow him to use his New York teaching certifications to teach at Don Bosco, and he started his $62,000 position in December, according to nj.com.

Don Bosco told a Post reporter last week that he was never charged with a crime and should not be barred from teaching. “Did I break any laws? No. Did I cross any lines? No,” he told the reporter.