In this episode of Not Just A Terrible Story, host Sydney Gladue introduces the story of Stacie Love, whose life changed in 2005 when federal agents knocked on her door. Her marriage to a former English teacher, who was widely admired by colleagues and students, later raised questions she did not understand at the time.
Twenty years on, Love searches for the truth about her marriage and about a school community that, as several speakers describe, looked past warning signs. Listeners will hear how an investigation file reshaped her understanding of what happened and why she now sees her experience as part of a wider culture the episode describes as complicit.
In this episode Sydney Gladue
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There is no way in hell I'm going to the high school reunion. That would be the most embarrassing thing to go. I'd be like, "Oh hey, remember? I'm the one that married the teacher, and then he turned out to be a doll creep."
It was this all-American kid that went out and got his education and came back to the school to teach. I mean, everybody thought he was a great teacher.
We all just loved Brett. Very student-centered, very supportive.
This isn't just the story of how Stacey married her former English teacher. It's about the place where it happened, and the community that watched it unfold.
It almost was, like, normal. Not quite normal, but, oh, we've seen this before.
The other teachers must have known he was married to a former student, if we all knew.
And there were things that were rumored to have happened, and the teacher stayed. There was this good old boys culture at Centennial during this time.
But what happened in high school was actually just the beginning of Stacey's story.
He never made me feel any better about who I suspected he was.
And I remember saying at the time, "Get out. There's red flags here. You need to listen to your intuition. Something is not right."
And then there was a knock at the door. I just kept thinking, "Please don't let it be another student. Please don't let it be another student. Please don't let it be another student. Please don't let it be another student. Plese don't let it be another student."
It was federal agents from the Department of Homeland Security.
Jim and I have both worked hundreds of these kinds of cases. We didn't— we didn't miss very often.
Stacey didn't really know why they knocked on her door that day. And she wouldn't for another two decades.
What— what is this?
This is the investigation file from the Teachers' Standard Practice Commission.
Wow. That's insane. Had I known the truth, I think I would have made very different decisions. I don't want this to be my story. I really don't. I don't want this to be my life.
But this is not just a terrible story.
And now I can say, I was a victim, and so were my friends, and so were many other people in that classroom and in that school district and in that school.
I'm Sydney Gladue. Subscribe to Not Just a Terrible Story on your podcast listening app. Episodes 1 and 2 release September 15th.
Um, wow. Ugh. Go Eagles.
In 2005, Stacie Love's life was turned upside down by a knock on the door. Twenty years later, she discovers the truth about her marriage to her former teacher and a culture of complicity that protected predators for decades. Not Just A Terrible Story is one woman's search for answers.
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