A middle school health teacher in Douglas County was arrested Monday on suspicion of sexually assaulting a student going through a mental health crisis, according to the sheriff’s office.
Teresa Whalin, 28, was arrested on investigation of sexual assault on a child by one in a position of trust, internet sexual exploitation of a child and repeated stalking, according to the .
Whalin, a Centennial woman and integrated wellness teacher at Ranch View Middle School in Highlands Ranch, is about 12 years older than the unidentified victim, according to her arrest affidavit.
The 28-year-old has been employed by the Douglas County School District since July 2021, according to a letter sent to parents by Ranch View principal Erin Kyllo.
As of Wednesday, Whalin had been placed on administrative leave by the school district, Kyllo wrote in the letter.
Whalin is no longer the student’s teacher, but was at the time of the incident, according to investigators.
The Douglas County student came forward to a counselor on Monday about the sexual relationship, which spanned parts of 2023 and 2024, according to Whalin’s arrest affidavit.
The counselor then notified the school resource officer, a Douglas County sheriff’s deputy, and Whalin was arrested later that day.
Whalin allegedly noticed the student, at that time, was cutting themself and struggling with mental health, but never reported the student, according to the document.
The student told the deputy that Whalin became someone the student trusted and they “developed a relationship with one another,” the affidavit stated.
Whalin and the student began having sex in April 2023, a relationship that lasted for more than a year, and exchanged explicit photos on Snapchat. The student described the relationship as “dating” and often went out to eat with Whalin or hung out in her office at Ranch View Middle School.
Whalin began picking the student up before and dropping them off after school, around the corner from the student’s house, the student told investigators.
Investigators said the sexual relationship lasted more than a year before the student eventually broke up with Whalin, according to the affidavit. The health teacher allegedly “struggled with the breakup” and began stalking the student.
Whalin continued to drive near the student’s home and showed up on the student’s walking path to and from school, the document stated. The student described fearing the teacher and said it felt like Whalin was following them.
The situation escalated to the point that the student tried changing routes and getting rides from friends to avoid Whalin, investigators said.
After being arrested on Monday, Whalin admitted to being in a sexual relationship with the student, exchanging nude images and making fake phone numbers to harass the student as an anonymous person. She said she hoped the student would be alarmed by the texts and turn to her for help.
“We are working to find a long-term substitute teacher for our impacted students,” Kyllo wrote. “In the meantime, the entire Ranch View Middle School administrative team will support our students and ensure learning continues.”
Anyone with information about Whalin or additional victims is asked to contact investigators at sclay@dcsheriff.net.
“I know it is concerning to receive news of this nature,” Kyllo wrote to parents. “Please know the safety and well-being of every student is of primary importance to Ranch View Middle School and the Douglas County School District.”
