MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – Jason Meyers spent Friday night at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center in northwest Miami-Dade County.
Aside from teaching English at Miami Palmetto Senior High School, he was accused of also using the classroom to have sex with a 17-year-old student, police said.
The teenage girl told police Thursday that she and her 40-year-old teacher of advanced placement English and creative writing had sex with her during the end of last year, police said. She had two classes with him, and she said the two would also get together after school.
Meyers is a married father of three. His wife is pregnant. He listed the University of Illinois as his alma mater on his Linkedin account. He was praised for starting the school's Open Mic Poetry Night. He told the Palmetto Panther that he started the after school activity seven years ago to "create an appreciation for poetry."
On his Rate My Teachers website profile, students left positive comments: "Best English teacher I have had," one user said. Another added, "One of the kindest, most knowledgeable people I've ever met. Incredible teacher." And another said, class discussions were "a stressful nightmare," because he was "condescending."
When a student was named national Portfolio Gold medalist in the 2015 Scholastic Art and Writing awards, she told a Community Newspapers reporter that she credited Meyers for her success. Meyers said that she expressed herself "through a voice and perspective that transcend her years."
Friday in court, his students' success or popularity didn't count. He faced a felony charge of sexual battery on a minor. Miami-Dade County Circuit Judge Cristina Miranda set his bond at $75,000. His next hearing was set for March 18 and he had an order to stay away from the teen and remain on house arrest, court records showed.