A teacher has been suspended from a vocational nursing school in Lier, near Antwerp, after allegations that he solicited nude pictures from his students in exchange for prior access to exam questions and engaged in sexual activity with his students in the school's basement.
The teacher, known only as 'K.M.', was an employee at the Sint-Aloysius Institute (SAL), and is widely considered an expert on psychological well-being. He has also worked as a consultant for numerous private healthcare providers.
An official complaint was made against K.M. in September this year by a group consisting of several students, who approached the school's board with evidence of K.M.’s impropriety, including screenshots and text messages.
"There are indeed stories going around within our school about sexual misconduct," SAL headmistress Sabine De Keyser told the Gazet van Antwerpen. "Because these are serious allegations and we want to get to the bottom of this, we will take the time to see what is true of this."
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De Keyser added that the teacher currently poses no threat to students since he is "not present at the school." Sources have since informed the Gazet van Antwerpen that K.M. has not been suspended, but rather is on sick leave.
Remarkably, the same sources have suggested that the teacher could return to teaching at SAL as early as the next year, with the school adopting various 'preventive' measures, such as forcing him to teach with the door open.
K.M. has categorically denied the allegations of sexual misconduct, and has even suggested that the school board is not aware of any complaints made against him.
