GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — A band leader at the Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science, and Technology has resigned from his position after he was charged with child molestation.
Michael Appelbaum, 40, is accused of having an inappropriate relationship with a student in 2011 and 2012. He was employed as the school’s band teacher. %
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In a letter sent to the state agency that oversees teachers, a district official wrote that the former student alleged that they had sexual intercourse a total of five times; Three times at school and two times at the student’s home.
Appelbaum denied the allegations.
Channel 2's Tony Thomas spoke with Emma D'Ambra, a high school senior who says she is friends with one of the alleged victims.
"She's been trying to get her voice heard and it's just been so difficult," D'Ambra said.
The district says Appelbaum was also reprimanded in 2013 for contact with another student.
The school was just named as the top school in Georgia and among the best in the nation.