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School Officials Want Seminole High Teacher Fired

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By STEPHEN THOMPSON | The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 7, 2008

LARGO - School administrators think the effectiveness of a Seminole High School teacher "has been diminished" after an investigation revealed he picked up a 17-year-old boy at a bar and took him back to his apartment for sex, Pinellas school documents show.

  Gerald DiPanfilo

Now, Pinellas Schools Superintendent Clayton Wilcox wants Gerald DiPanfilo fired.

DiPanfilo, 55, was investigated in July after St. Petersburg police suspected him of having engaged a minor in prostitution, the school documents show. But after the Pinellas-Pasco State Attorney's Office took a look at the case, prosecutors opted not to charge him.

The case was turned over to the Office of Professional Standards, which is the school system's internal affairs division, and DiPanfilo was assigned to the district warehouse during the probe.

According to a St. Petersburg police report, DiPanfilo admitted he met someone at a bar and the two took a cab to DiPanfilo's apartment in St. Petersburg, school documents say. DiPanfilo said that once they reached his apartment, he may have given money to the teen, and the police report goes on in some detail about the sex the two had, the school documents say.

Police identified the 17-year-old as a Pinellas School student, but there is no evidence showing they knew each other before they met at the bar, and DiPanfilo told authorities he had no idea the teen was a minor, school documents say.

The 17-year-old told authorities DiPanfilo gave him money for crack and for sex, school documents show. Though DiPanfilo told St. Petersburg police he may have given the teen money, when DiPanfilo was interviewed by the Office of Professional Standards he said he was unable to recount what happened July 17 because of the amount of alcohol he had consumed, school documents show.

DiPanfilo's criminal history shows he has had problems with illegal substances. In June, prosecutors filed two charges against him – driving under the influence with property damage, and possession of drugs without a prescription. He pleaded no contest to both charges, and was ordered to pay fines and serve probation, computerized court records show.

After looking into the allegation involving the 17-year-old, DiPanfilo's principal and school administrators concluded "his effectiveness as a teacher has been diminished," school documents show.

"As a teacher and leader of young people in this community, Mr. DiPanfilo has an ethical and moral obligation to be absolutely sure he initiates personal relationships only with persons who have obtained the age of legal consent and who are not students in Pinellas County Schools," school documents state. "Because he violated school board policies, dismissal is recommended."

DiPanfilo, who earns $58,870 a year, has requested an administrative hearing, which he is entitled to, school spokeswoman Andrea Zahn said today. In all likelihood, he will be suspended next week without pay following a school board meeting until the hearing process has reached its conclusion, she said.

Reporter Stephen Thompson can be reached at (727) 451-2336 or spthompson@tampatrib.com.

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