A New Jersey English teacher accused of having a sexual relationship with an 18-year-old student has now been suspended from her job, NJ Advance Media has learned.
Nicole McDonough, a West Morris Mendham High School teacher, is accused of having an inappropriate relationship with the student during May and June 2014. Details of the affair are slim and the gender of the student has not been revealed.
McDonough was arrested Tuesday and charged with second-degree official misconduct. On Wednesday, West Morris Regional High School District officials announced the 32-year-old English honors teacher was suspended.
"Ms. McDonough is on leave until further notice," Mackey Pendergrast, the district's superintendent, told NJ.com.
The alleged sexual relationship was uncovered after an investigation by the Morris County Prosecutor's sex crimes/child endangerment unit and Mendham Borough police, NJ.com reported.
Both departments released a statement Tuesday only saying that "law enforcement received information that...McDonough engaged in a sexual relationship with an 18-year-old student while she was employed as a teacher at West Morris Mendham High School."
Information on the school's website said McDonough, from Mount Olive, taught International Baccalaurete-level English classes and had been a teacher in the district for seven years. That information has since been removed.
McDonough was released Tuesday evening after posting $75,000 bail. The investigation into the alleged relationship is ongoing.
