Teacher at Christian school in Lakeland accused of sexual conduct with students
LAKELAND — A teacher at a small Christian school in North Lakeland was arrested Thursday on felony charges after two female students accused him of inappropriate sexual conduct.
The Polk County Sheriff's Office said deputies arrested 39-year old Derek Stribling of Lakeland at his home about 10:52 p.m. on charges of lewd molestation of a minor, lewd conduct, offenses against students by an authority figure and transmitting harmful material to a minor.
Sheriff Grady Judd said at a news conference Friday that the charges stem from Stribling's conduct with two students at Crossroads Christian School, where Stribling was a history teacher, dean, life coach and basketball coach. Judd said Stribling is married.
Both students accused Stribling of initiating sexual conversations and attempting to meet them for sex. One student was 18 at the time of the alleged conduct; the other was 14.
Derek Stribling was fired
Children Educational Services, which operates the Crossroads Christian School at 615 Old Polk City Road, said Stribling was hired in August 2019. He was fired Friday, the morning after his arrest, "due to accusations that were brought forth that are in clear violation of our code of conduct."
The Sheriff's Office said Stribling refused to speak to detectives about the investigation at the time of his arrest. Detectives said they started investigating Thursday morning after finding out that Stribling sent explicit text messages to the two students.
The adult student told detectives that Stribling asked her for her phone number on Feb. 14 to check on her after she had an argument with her dad. Judd said she was afraid she wouldn't be able to come to school anymore. Officials said Stribling told the victim that she had a 'D' in his class and she could get extra credit to help bring her grade up. He then initiated sexual conversation with the victim through text and the FaceTime app. Detectives said he exposed himself during one of these chats.
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The Sheriff's Office said Stribling tried to get the student to meet him in a hotel parking lot on a separate occasion but she refused.
The student who said she had a similar incident with Stribling when she was 14 said he was her basketball coach in 2020 and asked her to meet him in the gymnasium's equipment closet. She told detectives that when she went there, Stribling kissed her while rubbing her over her clothes.
"She also reported that he began communicating with her via the Snapchat app and text messaging," detectives said, adding that he twice exposed himself in video chats.
The underaged girl also said Stribling tried to get her to meet him for sexual encounters multiple times but she refused. Officials said both victims described details of his anatomy.
Judd said Stribling is a former basketball player for the University of Tampa and Tennessee Tech.
Rich Wead, the president of Children's Educational Services, said all CES employees are thoroughly vetted and complete a FDLE Level II background screening prior to employment.
"We take these allegations very seriously and reported them to the appropriate authorities immediately after we were notified," Wead said in a prepared statement. "Our students and families are our top priority, and we are deeply saddened by these allegations."
According to the CES website, CES schools are accredited by Cognia, formerly called AdvancED and referred to as SACS. The CES nonprofit educational company was established in 2009.
The Crossroads Christian School in Lakeland has between 50 and 60 students, according to Niche.com and PrivateSchoolReview.com.
Stribling's first appearance hearing was Friday and he has an arraignment hearing scheduled for May 10.
This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Polk County Sheriff's Office: Students accuse Lakeland teacher of sexual conduct
