ST. HELENS, Ore. (KPTV) – The school district superintendent and principal at St. Helens High School has been placed on administrative leave amid pressure over how the administration has filed a sexual assault investigation involving two teachers.

The school district sent out a letter Friday notifying families that Dr. Katy Wagner, principal at St. Helens High School, has been placed on administrative leave. The district also says Ryan Scholl stepped down from his role as board chair and Trinity Monahan is now vice chair. The school district superintendent was placed on paid leave Friday night at a school board meeting.

Scholl allegedly told families that the reason Stearns was allowed to teach for two months while he was under investigation was because of instructions from the police department, which the police department said is not true.

“We have heard the concerns that have been raised and are committed to transparency and working to foster a safe, supportive environment for all students,” the school district said in its letter.

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This week, a current teacher, Eric Stearns, and a former teacher, Mark Collins, were arrested for sexual assault involving minors. Students and parents have said the school knew about the investigation for months but allowed Stearns to continue teaching.

Tensions have been high in St. Helens since the allegations first came out. Between a contentious school board meeting Wednesday night and a protest Thursday morning, the school district canceled classes for both Thursday and Friday.

St. Helen’s High School (SHHS) students, parents, staff and supporters are in day two of protests, saying the administration did not act quickly enough to keep students safe and calling for the resignation of the SHHS principal and district superintendent.

“These decisions were made thoughtfully and with a focus on transparency and accountability within our district. Our goal is to ensure a safe and positive learning environment, with clear steps to address the concerns of our students, families and community members,” the school district said.

“It was shocking to hear someone that I felt so comfortable doing such horrible things,” said SHHS student Gabe Barker.

“He has always been a confidant of mine and it really hurt to hear that news.” said student Jack Roberts.

“When I first heard about the allegations, I talked to him about it because he was my favorite teacher,” student Tarrah Irish said. “He told me it wasn’t true and he was upset about it.”

Irish, Roberts and Barker are all seniors at SHHS who spent years in Stearns’ driving class.

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“We think we blocked it out because we were treated so well by him, but now that we think about it, it was so obvious — he was very scary to us and to other students,” Roberts said.

“He would put his hands on the kids’ faces to lift your soft palate or whatever, and it would scare most of the kids,” student Aurora Smith said.

The students were in class the day of Stearns’ arrest.

“It was so weird to see him that morning, teaching us…(CUT TO) to be the good teacher we thought he was, that in third period he ran out and then got arrested,” said one student.

The staff in the district are questioning the future of their jobs.

“I’ve been here 30 years, I’ve never wanted to quit my job, ever, and I thought — I’ve got to quit so I can take care of her and pull her out of school because she was in that class,” Bridgett said Harkins, employed by the St. Helen’s School District.

“It doesn’t mean anything, we’re not going to stop until they’ve both resigned and they’re gone,” Barker said.

“He knew about this for two months. The board lied to us and they kept him for two months,” Roberts said.

Stearns pleaded not guilty in his virtual court hearing Wednesday and his bail is set at $150,000. Collins appeared in court before a Columbia County judge where he pleaded not guilty.

The school district said further decisions will be made at the virtual board meeting Friday night.

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