im a mother of 2 daughters so im naturally upset over this situation, HOWEVER, when are the students going to be held accountable for their actions and their part in any sexual relationship with teachers? does anyone see how these girls dress and prance around? its like putting a steak dinner in front of a starving person and telling them no they cant eat it. school administrators and all else involved need to start disciplining everyone involved not just the teachers. we all know and we've all had crushes on our teachers in our lifetimes and at one point in time, its normal, but you cant let the ones who initiate the process get away with nothing. start making the students responsible for their actions and you will see this problem dissipate. thank you for the opportunity to voice my concern

Deann's incipid remark aside, what we need to know is when has the school board met and discussed the transfer, the suspensions, the allegations and now the hiring of a PR firm. We believe the school board must speak publicly on this matter. Where is the commentary from the peoples representatives? More closed door meetings and professional spinmeisters is not what wr need. A full and honest disclosure by the school board of what they knew and when they knew it. One further point, if any member of the school board fails to attend the meeting on Thursday and give their full attention to the people, we will be forced to protest at their homes and businesses. We are legion and we are watching.

Okay, taxpayers of the Black Horse Pike Regional School District, get your wallets out.

So instead of caring about students, reviewing management, supervision and oversight the Board of Education first real public announcement is to hire a PR firm? It is time to make changes at the top and clear out a board of education who is more interested in their image then the children and families of the district. It was all wrong, a full disclosure and transparency is what should be the reaction, not to get a mouth piece to hide behind.

The district did issue a statement on Thursday, through the prosecutor's office. See link to "District, Superintendent Issue Statements on Triton Sex Scandal" above.

No one should place blame on the girls, the teachers and the administration failed these children. The adults and people of authority needed to act appropriately. Are we really saying that because a girl may have worn a short skirt ect she is responsible? The adults who did not follow the laws or the districts policy are at fault. Yes I agree Thursday they have a lot to explain.

The REAL issue is the school board voting in secret to hire a PR firm to defend the actions of the district. Lets stay on topic and force the president of the board, Joyce Ellis, a member of the NJEA (teachers union) to make a public statement concerning the cover up by Triton administrators and the further inaction of the district and school board. We are watching.

I do not think the school board and administration are meeting there fiscal and goverance responsibilities by diverting money that I paid to educate students to try and convince tax payers that they are doing a good job. We do not need public relations we need employees that do a good job.

BHRSD is going to use property taxed money to hire a out of state PR firm to polish the reputation and image of a district that secretly allowed a teacher to engage in sexual activities with the support of two principals involved who covered up the allegations. It's our money they are going to spend. When is the next school board elections?

In most states sexual abuse of students by school personnel, then reported to school personnel, must be reported to the police, district attorney, etc. These over educated bozos did not report! They all should lose their jobs and even go to jail.
What happened to the Pennsylvania teachers, counselors, and administrators who poo pooed the boys who reported and asked for help when they were abused by Jerry Sandusky? Nothing. The PA laws were completely ignored; the school personnel were untouched by law; and, the boys were accused of slandering the wonderful Jerry Sandusky.
Most principals are accorded the privileges and rights of a king. Principals report to the school board which in turn acts as a dictator.
My prediction: more disgusting incidents will materelize across the country and more adults will be arrested, but not go to jail.

Deann, I completely agree with you! I don't believe for a second that these "victims" weren't fully willing participants if not full out instigators and aggressors.

Willing or not, having sex with a minor is against the law. Teachers fraternizing with students is against school policy. These grown men engaged in inapotoptiate and illegal activities. They were caught. School officials tried to cover it up, also against the law. Now the residents and taxpayers are on the hook for the financial fallout. But by all means, blame the teenage girls, not the college educated males who had no self control or the corrupt administrators who looked to protect the predators.

Pervert priests, Jerry Sandusky and now Triton. In the end taxpayers are footing the bill for cover ups and corruption following unspeakable breaches of trust. To any of you who blame the children, God help you if YOUR child is ever victimized. Only He will forgive you for that despicable way of thinking. We are coming.

The Sandusky case and the priests can't be compared to this. They both preyed on minor boys who were incapable of judging what was and wasn't appropriate. These girls were old enough to make those decisions, and were complicit in these sexual acts, by consenting at an age where they're legally allowed to consent. While the teachers' actions were completely inappropriate, this case doesn't compare to instances of rape. And I agree with those who say these girls may have been the instigators. As the father of a daughter in 9th grader, I can say high school girls these days are mature beyond their years, they know what they're doing.

Where were the parents of these "victims". I've got two kids that go there and I'm on top of everything they do. How come they didn't know. Yes the teachers are wrong but these girls parents failed them even more so than the school did. My kids know they aren't supposed to sleep with their teachers. How come these girls didn't think that? I know why..... Bad parenting or Absentee parenting. Instead of the parents taking responsibility they'll parade these girls around as poor victims. These girls were failed but hat failure happened long before they stepped into Triton

Alert the presses, Paul. You and I are on the same page!

And whether they were willing participants or even the agressors, had these "men" who were clearly in the position of power here, not gone along with it, we would not even be having this discussion right now.

Blaming the way a young girl dresses or carries herself is no different than saying that the woman who walks alone at night wearing a mini skirt and high heels and gets raped is "asking for it". You can try to blame these girls all you want, bottom line- no matter how you try to spin it, is that the teachers and administrators FAILED here in every conceivable way.
That being said, I will at least concede that the way teenage girls are allowed to dress and go to school nowadays is utterly ridiculous.
My daughter is in 5th grade and there are little girls in her class that wear makeup and short-shorts to school. Makeup! In fifth grade!
So, I totally get what is being said about the parental failure here as well.

I will never again vote for a tax levy for the kids--ha ha--unless it specifically states monies are only for books,buildings, and salaries. When,where,and by whom was hiring PR firm expenses ever listed in a ballot ? how about a vote on what taxpayers will allow their taxes to be used for, and not for whatever some boards can dream up.

They should allow every parent the right to remove their child from that school and allow them to take their kids anywhere they want until the parents are assured that this culture has ended and all stones were unturned. Make sure no other teachers are involved in this behavior and any teacher who heard of the rumors (according to the kids, everyone knew) should be disciplined! Disgrace that the whole system failed these kids! Maybe thats why a child had to go to a substitute teacher because he didn't trust another teacher or he had already tried that avenue and nothing came of it. If any school board member or anyone in administration also knew of this or even heard the rumor they should be removed also! Its not their job to do the investigation and determine if its real or a rumor, turn it over to authorities and let them do their job! Maybe if folks would of acted it wouldn't have gotten this bad.

While it may be ethically wrong, even a violation of school policy, Martinelli did not break the law. The girl he was involved with was 18 (legally an adult) at the time of contact. Last I checked, two adults having intimate relations is not a crime.

BTW, whit all the attention focused on the three teachers I would remind all of the complete failure exhibited by Triton Principal Catherine DePaul and former vice principal Jernee Kollock. If, in fact, these two are culpable in this situation, they should be thrown out on their cans and, if possible, have their pensions revoked. In my opinion they've already received much more taxpayer money than they ever deserved.

We have declined over the past few years in school rankings. Not getting any better.

Sorry, anonymous, there is a BIG difference intellectually between a 13 y.o. and 17 y.o. girl...which is one reason why these aren't considered rape cases. A 17 y.o. knows what she's doing, and is probably feeling cool about or even bragging about it to her friends.

And yes, these morally bankrupt teachers should have short circuited these relationships before they got started. And they will be punished, under a fairly recent law prohibiting sex between teachers or others in authority and their students/charges. But this doesn't cross the threshold of rape. Most 17 y.o.s are sexually active these days, and they can certainly consent. If they felt coerced or otherwise regretted their actions, they would've come forward early on. Instead, it was another, uninvolved student who blew the whistle.

Our daughter Brittany K. Slept with at least one of her teachers in high school and two that we know of in college. It has served her well because she got good grades in those classes. I only wish my son Ty could do that. He's a dope and could use some help

Please let's keep the trolls away.

The next board of education meeting is Thursday, I'll be there with a list of questions.

Are they open to the public?

The 6 p.m. portion of the meeting is executive session, the public session starts at 7 p.m.: http://patch.com/E-pBLy

As disgusted as I am with the behavior of the teachers, I am even more appalled by the behavior of the administrators. When my kids were at Triton, DePaul went by the last name, Kelleher, and would preach honesty, integrity and self -control when it came to sex and drugs. What a farce! I really hope she get what she deserves and loses her pension!

That is what I am afraid of...DePaul is 55 years old and has more than enough years to retire. She is an embarrassment to all educators who dedicate their lives and careers to building the minds, dreams and goals of our youth.

Do we actually know what monies were used to pay to hire this PR firm or is it just speculation? I'd imagine that this will be one of the first questions asked at the meeting on Thursday.

I too am really even more disheartened with the administrators. The teachers, well, they are just stupid in my opinion. But HOW on earth are we supposed to tell our kids that these are people who we are to look up to and TRUST? These are the people that WE PAY to PROTECT our children, to be sure that the teachers are acting in our kids best interests at all times. Not to protect grown men who violate school policy and break the law at the expense of all of our children.

As a longtime public relations professional, I can say the fact that there's so much ire on this thread illustrates exactly why the school district needs to hire a PR agency. If you think there's passion and a demand for answers here, imagine dealing with the same coming from both the local and now national media. There's much more than individual jobs to protect here, it's a matter of reputation for the entire district and restoring faith in parents and students, as well as others like the board members and politicians who control the purse strings. Unless the district can plug this bleeding wound, there could be long-term repercussions, such as "No" votes on school budgets, that will hurt future generations. Holding the guilty staffers accountable for their actions and inactions is a given, but PR is necessary to stem the rancor like that on display here and eventually make parents comfortable again with Triton HS as a place with the best interests of their children at heart. It will take time and proactive effort.

Really" ...How much did you get paid to write that Hogwash Swordfish Communications give me a Break it's a waste of MONEY to hide the truth .Tell us all the truth that all we all demend it

Well scubily scrappily dappily. I's don't sees the problems heres.

Thursday October 11, 2012, Timber Creek H.S. first Black Horse Pike BOE meeting, public session begins at 7pm. We want answers.

How about we ask the 3 teachers and 2 administrators that caused all of this to pay for the PR firm? They can use the paychecks that they are still drawing.

I know it's been a few weeks since the sex scandal broke but I'm very interested in where this situation goes. The PR firm, the perv still getting paid and the principal covering it up. It's still a real story.

The five arrested - teachers, principle and vice principle are technically " STILL" employed !!!! They are still receiving a paycheck ... The board legally can't fire any of them until they are indicted or plead guilty which NONE have done yet. If they plead not guilty and move forward, if a grand jury finds them guilty, they automatically do at least 5 years in jail ! I hope they are found guilty and thrown in prison. Our justice system is one that gives time to those charged to decide how they will plea. Its a game of " chicken". 3 months is LONG ENOUGH to have them sitting around, collecting our money. ALL A GAME !! Its not a game to those families dealing with the aftermath of what occurred. For all those parents out there that put blame on the girls, SHAME ON YOU !! You wouldnt be blaming them if one of them were your daughter. There is something terribly wrong with people today. No one wants to take responsibilty for anything. No one wants to get involved. Its apalling how many people knew about this long before it hit the news. They did NOTHING!! Disgrace!! Our kids are not safe ANYWHERE!

Scrappy dappy doo! I's does thinks we's be's gettins just a fine's edumications up in dis here tizownship!