Wanted teacher, charged with sexual assault, loses his teaching certificate

A fugitive Red Bank Elementary School teacher accused of sexually assaulting a student lost his teaching privileges Tuesday.

The state Board of Education suspended the certificate of Hianlucas Isturiz Rodriguez, 40, who is wanted on two counts of first-degree sexual assault, which are felonies.

“The SCDE (South Carolina Department of Education) has reason to believe that, due to the serious nature of these allegations of misconduct, Mr. Isturiz may pose a threat to the health, safety, and welfare of students,” the board wrote in its order issued Tuesday afternoon.

Suspension in one state generally are shared with other states in the Southeast and even across the nation, agency spokesman Ryan Brown said.

Suspension is only one of the constraints that can be applied in situations similar to those involving the former kindergarten Spanish teacher, Brown said.

Warrants from the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department identify the teacher using the last name of Rodriguez. He remained at large Tuesday, a sheriff’s spokesman said. That office is saying little about where they think he is. Deputies continue to ask for the public’s help in locating Rodriguez.

The U.S. State Department, which oversees foreign teacher programs that allow participants to teach here for up to five years, also can notify immigration officials, restrict passports or revoke a visa that permits them to work in the country, Brown said.

Rodriguez was hired to teach at Red Bank Elementary through a North Carolina company, Educational Partners International, based in Black Mountain. The company’s managing partner, Debra Martin, on Monday would say only that Rodriguez is “formerly associated” with the firm. She would not elaborate.

Rodriguez has bachelor’s and master’s degrees in preschool and elementary education as well as education evaluation from the Central University of Venezuela, said Lexington 1 school district spokeswoman Mary Beth Hill. He taught in Venezuelan schools for three years before being hired by the district.

His salary was $42,873, Hill said. Rodriguez was hired in August 2014 to teach at Red Bank Elementary, which has about 550 students, she said.

Educational Partners International is among five companies that provide foreign-born teachers in South Carolina, Brown said. It has operated here for at least four years, and Brown said he’s unaware of any other of its teachers running afoul of the law during those years.

“They are a well-regarded company,” he said. “They have been good partners.”

The State Department and the Department of Homeland Security also screen those seeking to come to this country to teach, Brown said. Further, the state Education Department conducts FBI and State Law Enforcement Division checks before applicants can be certified to teach here, he said.

This story was originally published May 2, 2017 at 3:22 PM with the headline "Wanted teacher, charged with sexual assault, loses his teaching certificate."