Shannon Best, 33, is accused of having sex with a female student at Best's northwest Raleigh apartment over the weekend.
The 18-year-old student is not identified in court documents, but her name is apparently well-known to students.
"I feel sorry for her, cuz, like, that is kind of, like, her personal business and it's already been spread around school," Sanderson senior Calvin Johnson said.
Johnson says word of the alleged encounter began spreading Monday night. At first he was surprised to hear of the criminal charged against Best because of the student's age.
"I didn't know how much of a role it played, cuz I knew she was 18," Johnson said. "I knew she was, like, considered an adult."
But Best is charged under a state law that prohibits school employees from sexual contact with students no matter their age. Such encounters are also against school policy.
"Any sort of conduct with students of a romantic or sexual nature is absolutely not acceptable," Michael Evans, Wake County Schools, said.
Evans says /*Sanderson*/ officials were tipped off by an e-mail and reported the allegations to /*Raleigh Police*/. He says Best resigned from her job and then was charged.
Johnson and other students say the whole thing is a sad diversion.
"We should definitely be looked at for our academics and this kind of like put us on the map for something we shouldn't be known for," Johnson said.
School officials say Best resigned from her position at the school Monday.
She will remain out on bail pending a May court date at the Wake County Courthouse.
