A Missouri high school teacher says she has been placed on leave after officials discovered that she was performing on a pornography website to supplement her salary.

Brianna Coppage, 28, who taught English at St. Clair High School, says her teaching days are probably over, but she acknowledged she knew the risks.

Coppage told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that she was put on leave on Wednesday after being interviewed by two administrators. Her access to school email and other software was suspended while the district investigates, she said.

“It was kind of always like this cloud hanging over my head, like I never knew when I would be discovered,” Coppage said in an interview. “Then, about two weeks ago, my husband and I were told that people were finding out about it. So I knew this day was coming.”

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[–] 117 points 3 years ago (35 children)

M... maybe we could try paying teachers enough so that they don't have to open an OF to make ends meet?

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  • [–] 104 points 3 years ago* (28 children)

    What frustrates me is schools are frequently very willing to spend money on sports related expenses. A librarian left a a New Hampshire school $4 million dollars. They spent $100,000 on the library and $1 million on a new scoreboard (source) In the vast majority of states the highest paid employee is a football coach (source). Local governments don't really care about education and because local governments are typically elected to me that means American citizens don't really care about education either.

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  • [–] 90 points 3 years ago* (last edited 3 years ago) (2 children)

    The school you’re talking about is my alma mater, what they did is even worse then you describe.

    That librarian was neurodivergent and left his savings to the university at which he worked with no specific restrictions.

    The university execs wanted to use the money on sports, and directed the advancement department to create a narrative to support that decision. They found a mention he enjoyed watching sports at the nursing home during the last months of his life.

    Close friends said he wasn’t interested in sports at all - he loved numbers and statistics, and at the end of his life at a nursing home the only numbers he could get to were baseball statistics. He couldn’t care less about the sport, he just liked the math.

    UNH rewrote his life and personality to justify spending his gift on athletics.

    https://deadspin.com/how-unh-turned-a-quiet-benefactor-into-a-football-marke-1819064622

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  • [–] 18 points 3 years ago

    That's a frustrating read but I'm glad I got to see a glimpse of the man who was just a random bit of trivia rattling around in my head. I'm going to try to remember Robert Morin as a kind man who loved learning and generosity. To me those are wonderful traits. And I'm willing to bet that the name Robert Morin will live on in that library for generations to come. Thanks for posting this.

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  • [–] 20 points 3 years ago (9 children)

    Many Americans don't recognize the importance of paying attention to local politics, even when they care about education.

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  • [–] 22 points 3 years ago (8 children)

    We're at a point where, in my opinion, that's analogous to someone smoking and chewing tobacco their whole life and then being shocked when they're diagnosed with cancer.

    I know that comes across as sanctimonious and that isn't my intention I'm just frustrated with amount of willful ignorance in our society.

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  • [–] 3 points 3 years ago (2 children)

    Oh, don't get me wrong, I agree. I just felt the need to point out that there are still a great many people who value education but are not part of the solution, due to ignorance (ironically), apathy, or hopelessness.

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  • [–] 0 points 3 years ago (4 children)

    One is a real physical addiction, the other is willful obstinacy.

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  • [–] 2 points 3 years ago (3 children)

    I think the surprise is the key element being compared

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  • [–] 0 points 3 years ago (2 children)

    I don’t know of any addict of any substance, including food, who is surprised. I’m sure it happens, but in my underserved area, living to seventy or older is the real surprise.

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  • [–] 15 points 3 years ago

    It's worse than that. A lot of school boards are run by right-wing assholes because a lot of Americans are very concerned about education in the sense that they want to prevent children from learning anything about how the world actually works.

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  • [+] 10 points 3 years ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (8 children)
  • [–] 3 points 3 years ago (7 children)

    Wow, I'm not going to lie. Out of sheer morbid curiosity I'd really be interested in seeing how that sausage gets made. You should consider keeping a journal and maybe writing a memoir someday. A kitchen confidential for nonprofits.

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  • [+] 12 points 3 years ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (5 children)
  • [–] 3 points 3 years ago (1 child)

    I honestly think a publisher might be interested in a book like this. You should consider it. They have people to help with the writing and if you're ethical and give a coauthored credit I bet there's a ghostwriter out there who would love to publish a good old fashioned muckraker with you.

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  • [–] 0 points 3 years ago (2 children)

    Next Christmas season I am just giving money to random homeless people who ask me for it. At least I know 100% of that money will go to them.

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  • [+] -12 points 3 years ago (3 children)

    A scoreboard can be an investment though if they can increase attendance at the games.

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  • [–] 8 points 3 years ago (1 child)

    Education should be a cost to the state, as a tax payer funded human right. It should not be a for profit business

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  • [–] -4 points 3 years ago

    I'm not sure how that fits in this discussion. We're talking about how a donation was spent. If that donation can be used to generate a stream of money to be used instead of simply used up all at once, it's advantageous to do so.

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  • [–] 6 points 3 years ago

    I've heard that argument. I see the point at least a little. I personally don't find it convincing. If game attendance is high enough it should be able to fund itself. If it isn't then I believe those monies could be more productive elsewhere.

    People shouldn't downvote you though because they disagree with you though. You're just offering your own personal perspective.

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  • [–] 49 points 3 years ago (5 children)

    Also stop making us pay for our own supplies. We can’t write off more than $300 of class materials on our taxes too - maybe she could add some pencils to her routine to make them a legitimate business expense.

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  • [–] 13 points 3 years ago (4 children)

    I can't fathom this is real. The US education system is destroyed in that case.

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  • [–] 4 points 3 years ago (2 children)

    I get $300 a year for classroom supplies, etc. can’t spend it on xyz. Can’t buy a personal printer but can buy ink with it. Can’t buy candy/food/etc unless it is tied to a specific lesson plan where that is integral to the lesson and not simply a reward. Lot of it goes to napkins/tissues/pencils/etc. for students.

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