Former Contracted School Bus Driver Charged with Statutory Sexual Assault

A former contracted school bus driver has been charged by State College Police after allegedly engaging in a sexual relationship with a 15-year-old female State College Area School District student this past summer.

Matthew Scott Dunlap, 25, of Port Matilda, was arraigned before District Judge Thomas Jordan Tuesday morning on charges of statutory sexual assault, corruption of minors, unlawful contact with a minor, obscene and other sexual materials and performances and indecent assault. He was remanded to the Centre County Correctional Facility in lieu of $200,000 straight bail. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Nov. 23.

State College Police Chief John Gardner, SCASD Superintendent Bob O’Donnell, and District Attorney Stacy Parks Miller held a press conference Tuesday to address the charges.

‘We have a student and family who are working through this difficult situation and our district’s first priority is to ensure they receive all the support we can provide,’ O’Donnell said.

‘While these alleged incidents occurred at a private property, I’d like to emphasize it’s still our role to do everything we can to keep students safe. To achieve that, we truly depend on our students, faculty and staff, our parents and our strong relationship with our local police departments.’

Gardner said that on Sept. 28, School Resource Officer Terry Stec was informed by State High Principal Curtis Johnson of a complaint of a rude bus driver. Stec began to investigate and was allegedly told by students that the girl and Dunlap spoke nearly every day at the bus stop even though she did not ride his bus. Students also told Stec they had overheard Dunlap and the girl talking about texting and Snapchatting with each other.

Stec reported the information to Johnson and the girl’s mother. School district personnel immediately contacted contractor Long Motor Buses early during the investigation on Sept. 28 and Dunlap was removed from driving that morning. Dunlap was a contracted driver, not a district employee, but had undergone criminal and child abuse background checks. He had been a contracted bus driver since 2012, first for Cole Transportation and then for Long since the start of the 2015-16 school year.

Later that evening, the mother called Stec and told him her daughter informed her that she had a sexual relationship with Dunlap during the summer.

On Sept. 29, Stec interviewed the girl at the State College Police Department and she allegedly said she had exchanged nude photographs with Dunlap and had sexual intercourse with him on three occasions in June, July and August at her home. She later discussed the details of the incident at the Centre County Child Advocacy Center.

The girl agreed to a forensic examination and extraction of information from her cell phone, where police allegedly found evidence of of the communications between Dunlap and the minor.

The same day, police interviewed Dunlap, who allegedly admitted to sending and receiving nude photos and having sexual intercourse with the girl twice during the summer.

‘I can’t speak enough about how this incident was handled immediately and swiftly and with the utmost professionalism by not only this department but also the State College Area School District personnel,’ Gardner said. ‘In addition we received tremendous cooperation and advice from the Centre County DA’s office.’

The girl was not a passenger on Dunlap’s bus, but had been while she was in middle school two years ago. He began contacting her by social media when she moved to high school in 2015. Parks Miller said the evidence shows that the alleged relationship did not begin until 2016. The alleged incidents did not occur on school property or on a bus and Dunlap is not believed to have had an alleged relationship with any other students.

Gardner added that anyone with information that could aid the investigation is urged to contact State College Police at (814) 234-7150.

‘I think this incident serves to illustrate the importance of the relationships that not only School Resource Officer Stec has formed with school district personnel as well as students of the district, several of whom felt comfortable approaching him regarding their concerns in this matter, but it also speaks to the ongoing tremendous working relationship we have with the school district,’ Gardner said. ‘As the parent of a daughter who is a senior at that school I feel quite comfortable with the way things were investigated and handled there.’

‘I commend the State College School District and of course State College Police Department for their very proactive approach to this incident,’ Parks Miller added. ‘This crime did not happen on school district property but the school district absolutely made sure they reached out to all of us. We worked as a team and they are very concerned about all of their students.’

O’Donnell said the district is reviewing training regarding student interactions for contracted personnel and that health curriculum has been added lessons on appropriate relationships as part of a regular curriculum update.

The district has about 100 buses that transport approximately 7,500 students daily. A little more than half are owned by the district and driven by SCASD employees, O’Donnell said, while the rest are operated by contractors who undergo the same background checks as district employees. Since 2014, all school buses have had audio and video recording equipment that is in operation every day.

Stec and Det. John Aston, who led the investigation in this case, will hold a community seminar at 7 p.m. on Jan. 12 at Mount Nittany Middle School to help parents better understand how to monitor their children’s phones.

Parks Miller said background checks can only accomplish so much and that it is imperative for parents to be aware of who their children are communicating with.

‘This does fall to parents to be more proactive in their child’s life and know what’s happening,’ Parks Miller said. ‘We do encourage parents to find a way comfortable for them to know what their child is doing. We ask parents to become more vigilant.’