Kayla Berrie, the 23-year-old assistant band director at Long County High School in Georgia, has been charged with sexually assaulting one of her male students.
Berrie, 23, was arrested on Wednesday, October 18, following a lengthy investigation.
According to the Long County Sheriff’s Office, Berrie is currently out on $5,000 bond and the case will go to the grand jury next March. The charges came after a four-month investigation into the alleged assault.
The Long County High School website says that Berrie who has been suspended served as director of choral activities and assistant band director at Long County High School.
via Daily Mail:
Berrie, a recent graduate of the University of Georgia, was hired last year as director of choral activities and assistant band director at Long County High School. According to the sheriff’s office, they learned on September 29 of Berrie’s alleged sexual encounter with her 15-year-old student at the end of the previous school year after the victim confided in a friend. The boy’s friend then went with that information to his mother, who also teaches at the school.
As of Monday morning, her name was still listed on the high school’s website. Besides working as a high school chorus teacher, Berrie has been pursuing a career as a singer-songwriter, jazz vocalist and saxophone player. According to an interview published in the University of Georgia newspaper The Red & Black in June 2016, Berrie got her first big break as a musician when she was invited to take part in the annual AthFest musical festival in Athens, Georgia, that year.
Berrie revealed in the Q&A that she started writing songs in 2015 but has been singing and playing the saxophone from the time she was a young girl. She also talked about drawing her inspiration from Sara Bareilles and wanting to put out her first album, which she did this summer. Her self-titled debut album was released on August 18, including 10 songs with titles like ‘Drowning Together’ and ‘Mr Spaghetti.’
Berrie has been suspended with pay pending the outcome of the case.
