West Boca High teacher in trouble over photos for 'national bikini team'

By Scott Travis
South Florida Sun-Sentinel Education Writer
Posted May 11 2006


A teacher at West Boca Raton High School is under investigation after school district officials learned about risqu? photos of her on a Web site.

Erica Chevillar, 25, is a first-year social studies teacher at the school. She is also one of about 80 models featured on the Web site of the USA National Bikini team, a Boca Raton-based company, according to the Web site. The site lists calendars for sale featuring scantily clad models dressed in bathing suits, provocative outfits or lingerie.


Chevillar, using the name Erica Lee, appears in outfits ranging from cleavage-baring jackets to skimpy bikinis in about two-dozen photos.

West Boca Raton High Principal Fran Giblin said he learned about the photos Wednesday after a parent complained. He turned the matter over to the district's professional standards department, which handles investigations of noncriminal matters.

"I would certainly hope that we set the highest standards for our students," Giblin said. "If this in fact is true, it's a concern. A big concern."

The district has only a general policy that requires teachers to behave "morally and ethically," school district spokesman Nat Harrington said.

"There's no policy that says what someone can or cannot wear or whether they can be photographed on the Internet," Harrington said. "We expect our employees to use good judgment and appropriate behavior in all they do. The question now is whether this is appropriate or inappropriate."

Chevillar was on the job Wednesday, Giblin said. Officials said they don't know if she'll be moved during the investigation. The last day of school is May 31.

Harrington said he is not aware of similar incidents. A Broward County teacher was recommended for firing and then resigned in 2002 after officials there learned he appeared in a pornographic video.

Chevillar could not be reached for comment by the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, despite attempts by phone and at her house.

She told WPTV-Ch. 5 that the photos were taken while she was in college. She also said this would be her last year teaching and that she was getting out of the profession to become a real estate agent.

The Web site lists the USA National Bikini Team president and CEO as Rick Leto, who could not be reached for comment despite a phone call. Richie Stack, listed on the site as a public relations contact, could not be reached for comment by e-mail.

Several students said links to the Web site have been e-mailed around school. But the students couldn't use school computers to visit the site because it is blocked.

"I don't think it's appropriate," said Josh Yanover, a sophomore at the school. "It's a teacher. People are going to be paying more attention to her than what they are learning in class."

Melody Powali, a parent of two students at West Boca Raton High, said she felt sorry for Chevillar and hopes she doesn't lose her job.

"Maybe she can say, `I made a wrong decision' and not do it again," Powali said. "She is young. We all do foolish things when we're young."

Staff Researcher William Lucey and South Florida Sun-Sentinel news partner WPTV-Ch. 5 contributed to this report.

Scott Travis can be reached at [email protected] or 561-243-6637.