OVIEDO, Fla. – An Oviedo High School baseball coach, who resigned amid a district investigation, had an inappropriate relationship with a female student over the last year, according to an investigative report released on Monday.
20255894
Harold Hitt stepped down as Oviedo's varsity baseball coach last week when it was announced that he was under investigation a month after he led Oviedo to a state championship.
According to the report, Hitt communicated with the student, who has learning disabilities, via Facebook instant messages and used terms of endearment such as "babe," "gorgeous," "BFF" and "BAE."
Hitt is also accused of posing for a picture with the then-18-year-old student at the 2014 junior prom, after which he allegedly told her how drunk he was and kissed her on the lips, officials said in the report.
"I might have had a couple of beers at the pool during the afternoon eating lunch and hanging out. I'm not going to lie about it," Hitt told investigators. "She might have smelled alcohol and said, 'You know, are you drunk?' and I'm like, 'No.'"
Hitt apologized to school board investigators as they questioned him about what happened.
"To be honest with you, I'm actually pretty embarrassed," he told investigators. "I'm very upset with myself, and I'm embarrassed about this -- that I didn't do a better job with my judgment."
Hitt also denied any involvement in the decision-making that led to the student choosing to appear in a pornographic movie last December.
Seminole County school board members will vote whether or not to terminate Hitt when they meet on July 28.
"I am disgusted by the recent allegations raised about a few of our 7,500 outstanding SCPS employees," Seminole County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Walt Griffin said in a statement, referring to teacher incidents at Oviedo and Hagerty high schools. "These allegations are damaging to our profession and to our district.
"We will continue to investigate every reported incident, report all suspected criminal activity to the police and take appropriate disciplinary action, including termination. There is nothing more important to me than the safety of our children."
The investigation comes days after a fourth teacher was arrested at Hagerty High School in Oviedo. Greg Vaughn was recently arrested by the FBI on sex allegations. William Nordin, a special education teacher, was arrested in May 2014 on sex assault charges. Michael Fitzwater, a teacher's aide, was arrested in September 2014 on charges of unlawful sexual contact with a minor. William Gierke, the dean at Hagerty, was charged in February 2015 with soliciting prostitution.
Watch Local 6 News and stay with ClickOrlando.com for more on this story.