Former "teacher of the year" arrested for allegedly having sex with 16-year-old: "There may be additional victims"
A former high school "teacher of the year" has been arrested in California for allegedly having sex with a 16-year-old boy and authorities said they "believe there may be additional victims."
Tracy Vanderhulst, a 38-year-old math teacher at Yucaipa High School, was arrested late Thursday night for unlawful sexual intercourse involving a minor and held on $30,000 bail, the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Office said in a news release. It was not immediately clear if the minor was a student at the high school.
In a tweet that has since been deleted, the school said that Vanderhulst "offers up a rigorous mathematics curriculum and deep caring for her students," CBS Los Angeles reported.
Vanderhulst was honored as "teacher of the year" in 2017. According to a citation quoted by the News Mirror, Vanderhulst "epitomizes the educator so many desire to be — she is the kind and innovative teacher from whom we hope our children will grow; the educator who strives to engage all of her students from her intervention classes to her honors classes."
According to a Facebook post, Vanderhulst joined the staff at Yucaipa High School in 2013.
As they continue to investigate the incident, detectives released Vanderhulst's booking photo as they work to determine if there are additional victims.
Investigators and the Yucaipa Calimesa Joint Unified School District "worked cooperatively to ensure a thorough investigation into this matter was completed," the sheriff's office said.
Anyone with more information is asked to contact them at (909) 890-4904.
