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Tampa Prep notifies parents after former teacher is linked to sexual abuse scandal

 
Franklin Coleman, a Tampa Prep music teacher from 1997 to 2008, has been accused of sexually abusing boys while working at St. George's School, an Episcopalian prep school in Middletown, R.I. [Times files (2007)]
Franklin Coleman, a Tampa Prep music teacher from 1997 to 2008, has been accused of sexually abusing boys while working at St. George's School, an Episcopalian prep school in Middletown, R.I. [Times files (2007)]
Published Jan. 7, 2016

TAMPA — Tampa Preparatory School has sent a letter to parents informing them of the private school's connection to an unfolding sexual abuse scandal in Rhode Island.

Franklin Coleman, a Tampa Prep music teacher from 1997 to 2008, has been accused of sexually abusing boys while working at St. George's School, an Episcopal prep school in Middletown, R.I.

One of the accusers, Hawkins Cramer, spoke with the Tampa Bay Times on Tuesday and said Coleman sexually abused him while he was at St. George's from 1981 to 1985.

Coleman did not respond to several attempts by the Times to contact him this week. He denied comment to a New York Times reporter outside his Newark, N.J., home Tuesday. He told the reporter to "talk to my lawyer," but did not provide a name. He has not been charged with any crimes.

Attorneys representing victims at St. George's say more than 40 have contacted them with allegations they were molested and raped at the school in the 1970s and 1980s, according to the Boston Globe, which broke the story.

In his letter to parents, Kevin Plummer, the head of school at Tampa Prep, said the Globe story identifies six employees and three students as perpetrators at St. George's. "Today, The Boston Globe identified one of the perpetrators as Franklin Coleman, who 10 years later also taught at Tampa Prep."

Cramer told the Tampa Bay Times he tried to warn Tampa Prep faculty about Coleman in 2004. He said he called a school official who thanked him for the information. Cramer said he was shocked to learn Coleman continued to work four years after the call.

Plummer did not comment on Cramer's allegations, saying he was not at Tampa Prep while Coleman was there. The head of school in 2004 could not be reached for comment.

Plummer told parents he is not aware of Coleman's current employment status or any complaints from students from the time he taught at Tampa Prep.

Before getting hired, he said, Tampa Prep teachers must pass an extensive background check that includes fingerprinting.

"My heart goes out to the former students at St. George's who have been affected by these terrible events," Plummer said in the letter.

Contact Sara DiNatale at sdinatale@tampabay.com or (813) 226-3400. Follow @sara_dinatale.