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	Parents Sue Episcopal School of Dallas over Daughter's Relationship with Teacher By Diane Jennings Dallas Morning News May 19, 2010 http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/051910dnmetteachersuit.3b1399a.html The parents of a former student at the Episcopal School of Dallas are suing the private school, accusing it of failing to protect their 16-year-old daughter from a sexual relationship with a teacher and expelling her "for being a victim." "The teacher victimized her, then the school victimized her," the girl's father said in an interview. The parents are identified in court papers as John and Jane Doe to protect their daughter's privacy. The Rev. Stephen Swan, the school's headmaster, did not return a call for comment, but attorney Donald E. Godwin said the school "took every appropriate action." "ESD did not dismiss the young lady from the school," Godwin said. "It was the decision of the parents, of the father, to remove the student from the school." The lawsuit alleges that J. Nathan Campbell, who taught history at the school, had a sexual relationship with the girl for seven months. Campbell could not be reached for comment. The relationship, which allegedly began in the spring of 2009, was discovered last fall when the teacher and student were found by police at night in a car in an abandoned parking lot. According to the parents, the two claimed the girl was undergoing counseling. No arrests were made immediately, but after the Police Department contacted the school, Campbell resigned. Godwin and the lawsuit both said Campbell acknowledged the relationship to school officials. Sgt. Brenda Nichols of the Dallas Police Department confirmed that a criminal investigation is ongoing. The age of consent for sexual relations is 17 in Texas, but there is also a statute making it illegal for a school employee to have a sexual relationship with a student of any age. Campbell, 34, who was married and has a young child, had sex with the girl at hotels and engaged in "inappropriate behavior with the victim on school property, and in his office during and after school hours," the lawsuit said. The suit refers to more than 3,800 e-mails, instant messages or pornographic text messages between the teacher and student. The suit alleges, "Campbell was permitted to resign without having ESD take any adverse action against him." Godwin said the school was preparing to terminate the teacher when he quit. After Campbell left ESD, the student continued to attend classes. But in January, the lawsuit alleges, the girl's father was told, "Headmaster Swan had decided that victim must leave the school." The girl's father said in an interview that school officials told him the school was a "hostile environment for her, and she needed to leave." He said he was told that if he did not sign a voluntary withdrawal form, his daughter would be expelled and unable to get teacher recommendations for college. "Either way, she was being forced to leave the school," the girl's mother said in an interview. Godwin said school officials were concerned about what the student was telling others at the school "about the event and the relationship she'd been involved in," but "the father decided to take his daughter out of ESD and put her into another school of the family's choice." The suit says the father signed the withdrawal form "under duress." When the parents told their daughter she would not be returning to the school she'd attended since kindergarten, and where their other children had graduated, "She was hysterical," the mother said. The family said the decision to sue was not a decision made lightly – not only do they have ties to the school and the church, but the girl's grandfather is an Episcopal priest. Godwin said ESD regrets the family's decision to sue. "We believe the school did everything it could to protect the interest of the child." Contact: djennings@dallasnews.com
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