When Larry Mintline took over Arundel High School's drama club in 1996, it was reeling from scandal - the previous drama coach had pleaded guilty to receiving child pornography over the Internet.
Under Mintline's direction, the scandal's shadow faded and the club gained a reputation for impressive student performances and daring productions, including the British musical Blood Brothers. In 2000, the Anne Arundel County Cultural Arts Foundation named him Educator of the Year.
Now, the 36-year-old English teacher confronts a scandal of his own: charges that he sexually abused a 16-year-old male student. His arrest and suspension this month rocked a tight-knit school drama community, while sparking a debate about Mintline's time at Arundel High and oversight by administrators.
Shocked supporters describe him as a dedicated, high-strung coach who inspired youngsters and helped to double attendance at school plays. Many remain loyal, and doubt that the charges are true.
Others say signs of unprofessional behavior were apparent before the arrest, in the form of improper friendships between Mintline and some students, and harsh treatment that drove some students from the club.
One father made a formal complaint about Mintline's treatment of his daughter - involving nothing of a sexual nature - several months before the teacher was accused of abuse. The principal investigated, but officials say they found nothing to indicate that Mintline was a danger to students.
Experts say that although it is difficult to know whether questionable behavior will turn criminal, schools should establish clear policies about teacher-student interactions to protect youngsters.
An explicit policy against fraternization sends a zero-tolerance message and encourages people to look for warning signs, says Robert J. Shoop, a law professor at Kansas State University and an expert in child abuse in school settings. "We shouldn't assume that everyone in teaching has appropriate values," he said. "We should make sure those values are defined."
Although the Anne Arundel school system has a policy against student-teacher dating and discusses improper friendships in teacher training, there is no formal policy against fraternization.
"It's really hard to put some of these ambiguous things in writing," said Synthia Shilling, a staff attorney for the schools. "In the end, it comes down to the teacher's good judgment."
Authorities allege that Mintline, a Glen Burnie resident, fondled the student and engaged in other sexual activity at their homes from July until last month. Mintline has been charged with two counts each of child abuse and fourth-degree sex offense, crimes punishable by up to 32 years in prison.
Police also said in charging documents that Mintline sent sexually explicit e-mails to two other students, although school officials say they never received complaints and no charges were filed based on those allegations. Police say they have not received allegations of abuse involving other students.
Mintline did not respond to several written requests for an interview or to telephone calls to his home.
His lawyer, Tom Morrow, said the teacher "emphatically denies" having engaged in sexual activity with the boy. Morrow also said that Mintline would challenge the child abuse charges on technical grounds.
The father of the alleged victim also declined to comment. The Sun does not identify alleged victims of sexual abuse.
Took job seriously
Even parents and students who dislike Mintline concede that he took his work seriously. But they say his teaching methods were emotionally cruel and that the club's atmosphere was oppressive.
Some said Mintline yelled at students and purposely upset them to elicit emotional responses in their performances.
"I saw an adult that acted like a spoiled child," said Samuel Crispin, whose son and daughter were in the club for several years. "His way of getting kids to do things was to scream and yell. That's not my way of guiding."
Dianna Ladny said Mintline insulted her daughter in the presence of other students and that the girl dropped out of the drama club after two years.
"He [verbally] attacked her, said things about the way she looked, said things about her religion," Ladny said.
She and other parents said Mintline was unable to draw a clear, professional line between himself and students.
"He touched them a lot," Ladny said. "He played with the girls' hair. He put his arms around the boys. It definitely had my antenna up."
Ladny said she warned her children, three of whom attend Arundel High, to keep their distance from Mintline. She added, however, that she didn't think her concerns were serious enough to report to the school.
Stephen Proctor, a deputy managing editor for The Sun and the only parent who formally complained about Mintline, said several incidents made him worry about students' welfare, although he had no indication of sexual abuse.
Proctor, whose wife is a teacher at Arundel High, made the complaint in March, after his daughter said she was being mistreated by Mintline because she wanted to devote less time to the club during her second year.
In a letter to Principal Nathaniel Gibson, Proctor wrote that Mintline bullied students, chatted online with them at night and was overly friendly with several, including one whom the teacher called his "best friend in the world."
Proctor also wrote that during a field trip to New York, Mintline made dinner reservations for himself and three students at Sardi's restaurant, leaving Proctor's daughter and others to "fend for themselves."
In response to the complaint, Gibson mediated a parent-teacher conference. He directed Mintline to apologize to Proctor's daughter and privately reprimanded him for the online chats and for leaving students unsupervised on the field trip.
Gibson later said he didn't see a need to refer the matter to higher authorities. "We were proactive, as proactive as we could be. We always err on the [side of] safety of the kids."
Proctor - whose daughter later transferred to another school - said administrators ignored his warnings that the teacher's conduct could lead to trouble.
"I must say I didn't have any smoking-gun evidence, but I do think I raised enough alarms. I felt like the desire of the school was to kind of brush it under the rug," he said.
Some support methods
Some parents and students chalk up complaints about Mintline to jealousy among club members.
"Any time you get a group of students together anywhere ... there are going to be people who are unhappy," said Kim Holtgren, whose daughter frequently played lead roles in the club's productions.
Several students said Mintline's teaching methods were effective.
Justin Christmas, a former club member, said the yelling didn't bother him. "Certain kids he made cry," he said. "I took it with a grain of salt."
In at least one instance, Mintline developed a student friendship that one expert says bordered on the unprofessional.
The student, Josh Orto, who graduated last year and is studying theater at Frostburg State University, refers to Mintline as his best friend and the reason he is pursuing acting. "I can't remember one time when he made me feel uncomfortable," Orto said.
Initially, Mintline set strict limits on the friendship, Orto said. After rehearsals, for example, "he didn't offer to drive me home because he was afraid someone would take it the wrong way," he said.
Mintline, who also avoided socializing with club members outside school, said he had to be cautious because of the previous scandal, Orto said.
After Orto graduated, Mintline took him on a weekend trip to New York as a present. The pair watched Broadway shows and shared a hotel room, with the consent of Orto's parents, the student said.
"At nighttime, when we were in the room, we stayed up all night playing cards," said Orto, who by that time was 18 years old. "Then he went to bed, and I watched a movie."
School officials apparently never knew of the trip.
Shoop, the child abuse expert, said activities such as the New York trip push the boundaries.
"Some things are not illegal, but they are unprofessional," he said. "That doesn't mean you can't have a friendship with a kid, but it should be focused on school."
Educators such as drama teachers and sports coaches, who spend considerable time with students, need to be especially careful, Shoop said.
"They're in a very close relationship with those children," he said. "They're unsupervised. They're in a position where the child idolizes and adores the teacher and is very proud of getting attention."