The case against a former Pinellas high school teacher who was fired in 2008 after allegedly having sex with a 17-year-old he met in a bar appears headed for a conclusion this month.

On Sept. 16, the Education Practices Commission is scheduled to consider the recommendation of an administrative law judge that Gerald DiPanfilo’s teaching certificate be revoked for eight years.

DiPanfilo was a longtime art teacher at Seminole High when St. Petersburg police investigated him in 2007. Charges were not filed, but the case was turned over to the district’s Office of Professional Standards. The board voted to fire him in September 2008.

DiPanfilo’s testimony about what happened at his apartment is not credible, Judge Susan B. Harrell wrote in a June 30 recommended order.

In an email to The Gradebook this week, DiPanfilo maintained his innocence. His personnel file shows satisfactory evaluations with the exception of a caution for misconduct in 2000.