A Florida man's teaching licenses was revoked after he allegedly made racist comments toward student-athletes and sent explicit text messages to female students, the Daytona Beach News-Journal reports.
Kendall Bradley was hired as the head football coach and physical education teacher at Atlantic High School in Port Orange in 2017. According to the report, he was fired from the position in November of that year, after district officials received complaints about his inappropriate behavior in front of football players, such as reading their grades out loud as a form of embarrassing punishment, as well as telling athletes to "stop acting black."
Though Bradley was initially disqualified from working with Volusia County Schools after his termination, he was permitted to apply for vacant positions in mid-December 2017. But Bradley's eligibility was short-lived. He was barred from student contact in February 2018, after a parent claimed the former educator had sent lewd text messages to two 15-year-old female students. According to News-Journal, Bradley had solicited the underage girls for nude photos and requested for them to have group sex with him and a woman. One of the students also told police that Bradley had sent her a nude photo of himself via Snapchat.
Per the outlet:
Officers did not contact Bradley at the time, and did not have evidence of any nude photos being sent, according to the report. They notified the student’s father that if the family wished to pursue criminal charges, he would have to provide a tablet for evidence, but officers did not receive the iPad after multiple reminders. The case was closed due to the uncooperative reporting party, and the report stated it would be reopened if evidence was provided.
Bradley was never criminally charged, and maintains he had always acted in an appropriate manner with students.
"During my time at Atlantic, my only focus was to be a positive influence on the students, players, and community," he said to the News-Journal this week. "At no point did I communicate or interact inappropriately with any student. Nor was I discriminatory or out of line in my communication with student athletes."
Florida officials permanently revoked his teaching certificate in December 2019.
"As I have just been informed, information that I had no knowledge of, and is not correct, was filed and made public," Bradley said to said. "I have never been approached with, or asked about these situations personally, nor was I made aware that they had been issued when they were."
