St. Helens High School educators accused of student sex abuse begin court proceedings

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – The small town of St. Helens, Ore. was recently rocked by a sex abuse investigation after a current St. Helens High School teacher was arrested along with a former teacher.

Following a two-month investigation, St. Helens police accused both men — Eric Stearns and Mark Collins — of sexually abusing nine students on the high school campus over the course of several years.

Stearns, 46, was listed as the choir teacher on the high school’s website. On Wednesday, he appeared virtually in Columbia County Court to plead not guilty to seven counts of second-degree sexual abuse and one count of third-degree sexual abuse.

Court documents accuse Stearns of inappropriately touching six students who were less than 18 years old between 2015 and 2024.

Columbia County Attorney John Berg said "the allegations are that all the crimes happened at the St. Helens High School.”

Meanwhile, Collins, 64, is a retired teacher who posted $50,000 in bail and faces two counts of second-degree sexual abuse and one count of attempted second-degree sexual abuse following an investigation into allegations of misconduct.

Court documents allege Collins abused two students and tried to inappropriately touch another between the years of 2015 and 2023.

St. Helens police started looking into the educators back in September. Detectives said they “immediately conducted interviews and obtained a subpoena for records related to the allegations,” during which “former student victims and additional potential victims were also identified.”

The St. Helens School District hosted a board meeting Wednesday night, where hundreds of parents came searching for answers.

"Our first and foremost commitment has always been the safety and wellbeing of our students," said St. Helens Superintendent Scot Stockwell.

Multiple students came forward at the meeting to share their experiences.

"My freshman year was filled with fear as I was harassed and assaulted by another student. My only outlet was my choir class. As the bullying progressed. I found that my safe person was Mr. Stearns…I didn't find that it was weird that he would hug me, kiss me on the head, and tell me that he loved me," said Maddie Filardo.

"My experience at St. Helens High School left me feeling unsafe, and unheard by the administration," added Kimberly Medford. "Students will forever be damaged because of your guys' arrogance. You are all to blame, you are all guilty. Burn it to the ground and start fresh.

Parents also questioned why they weren't told about the two-month investigation playing out before Stearns was arrested.

"I just want to know what's being done. We seem to attract pedophiles in our school district. What's being done to prevent that and what's being done to the staff that's allowed that to happen," said one parent.

The district board chair, Ryan Scholl, made it clear at the beginning of the meeting that the district would not respond to public comment. He also gave an explanation as to why Stearns wasn't put on leave.

"When the police informed, they asked if he should be placed on admin leave and law enforcement said no. That's why he was not placed on paid admin leave," Scholl said.

In response to the arrests, a spokesperson for the St. Helens School District shared the following statement:

“We are deeply saddened by recent events involving allegations of sexual abuse concerning a current and former teacher at St. Helens High School. The safety, well-being, and trust of our students and families are our foremost priorities. We are fully committed to maintaining the highest standards of safety and accountability within our schools.

“To assist our students and staff during this difficult time, we have brought in additional counseling staff to be available to provide emotional support, guidance, and resources for anyone who may need assistance.

“As a district, our responsibility to protect students is paramount. We are working closely with law enforcement as they conduct their ongoing investigation, and the current teacher involved has been placed on administrative leave.”

The St. Helens police said their investigation had led them to more potential victims. Anyone with information is encouraged to contact law enforcement.