PHILADELPHIA (Daily Mail) — A married special-education teacher in Pennsylvania is facing over 60 charges after allegedly bringing a student to her parents’ home and having sex with him about a dozen times.
Michelle Mercogliano, 35, was charged on Wednesday after the 16-year-old victim’s family contacted police.
Mercogliano, a special ed teacher at Conestoga High School in Berwyn, faces 63 charges including Institutional Sexual Assault and the Corruption of Minors.
Michelle Mercogliano, 35, was charged on Wednesday after the 16-year-old boy’s family contacted police. She faces 63 charges after allegedly having sex with the boy about 12 times, often after her parents’ home
She’s also accused of providing medical marijuana to the teen, the Chester County District Attorney said.
Mercogliano began a sexual relationship with the boy in February, according to a criminal complaint from the Tredyffrin Township Police Department.
The boy’s father provided to police some marijuana packaging he found in his son’s closet with Mercogliano’s name on the label, according to the affidavit.
Mercogliano was a relatively new teacher at Conestoga High School in Berwyn, Pennsylvania and had only started working there last fall, the superintendent said
‘The [victim] disclosed that after school he would walk from Conestoga High School to the… apartment complex where Mercogliano would pick him up in the back parking lot and drive to his home, to her parents’ residence, or drive him to the Sunnyside Marijuana Dispensary in Phoenixville,’ court documents obtained by ABC News stated.
The investigation began after the victim told his sister of his relationship with Mercogliano and the sibling then informed the boy’s parents.
The pair allegedly had sex about 12 times, the victim told police, and often in Mercogliano’s parents’ home in Wayne, according to the complaint.
The boy was also said to have been provided with marijuana by Mercogliano around 15 times. She allegedly communicated with him through snapchat ‘as to go undetected,’ or via text message
Mercogliano was also said to have provided the boy with pot about 15 times.
She allegedly communicated with him through Snapchat ‘as to go undetected,’ or via text message.
The teacher lists herself as married on her Facebook page.
Tredyffrin/Easttown School District Superintendent Richard Gusick said in a statement to the Philadelphia Inquirer that Mercogliano was placed on leave on Tuesday and does not currently have access to school property.
‘We have no information at this time to indicate that the criminal investigation involves other students, he said, adding that the district is ‘deeply troubled by these allegations.’
‘The District remains committed to providing a safe and supportive school environment for all students,’ the statement said.
According to the superintendent, Mercogliano was a relatively new teacher to the high school and had only started working there last fall.
Chester County District Attorney Christopher L. de Barrena-Sarobe said: ‘Parents and students should be able to trust their teachers. The Defendant broke the law and destroyed that trust. It will not be tolerated.’
Mercogliano worked at Hillside Elementary School from 2019 to 2024, according to the district. She had worked as a paraprofessional at Hillside Elementary and Valley Forge Elementary Schools from 2014 to 2018.
‘The calculated actions by this Defendant are shocking and disturbing,’ Tredyffrin Township Police Department Police Chief Michael Beaty said.
‘We are here to support the victim and his family as we collectively work to rebuild the trust damaged by her criminal endeavors.’
Mercogliano has not yet been arrested, but the Chester County District Attorney’s Office said she had been ‘cooperative and arranging an appropriate time to turn herself in via her attorney.’
By LAUREN ACTON-TAYLOR/Daily Mail
