KS Teacher, Ex City Council Candidate Charged With Sex Crime Against Former Student

A Wichita, Kansas school teacher and former candidate for city council has been arrested for a sex crime against a former student. Thirty-nine-year-old Rodney Wren was arrested last week and charged with three counts of unlawful sexual relations with a student 16 or older, according to police documents.

Kansas CBS affiliate KWCH 12 reports that his arrest follows the coming forward of a student who told authorities of the inappropriate encounters. The student’s name is being kept private to protect their anonymity and safety. Wren, who has been a teacher at Wichita Collegiate high school since 2008, was first placed on administrative leave pending the ongoing investigation and was fired after his arrest. Last November, he ran for City Council in Wichita’s District 2.

In a statement, Wichita Collegiate said, "Our school has zero tolerance for any unprofessional conduct that falls below the standards we expect from our employees. The safety of our students is, and always will be paramount."

The school’s full statement reads as follows:

“The arrest of Rodney Wren, Sr., is extremely disturbing to our Wichita Collegiate School community. After previously learning of law enforcement’s investigation, Mr. Wren was placed on administrative leave. With his arrest, Mr. Wren has been terminated from Collegiate. Collegiate has been fully cooperating with authorities and will continue to do so. Our school has zero tolerance for any unprofessional conduct that falls below the standards we expect from our employees. The safety of our students is – and always will be – paramount.

We are contacting various local organizations who can help our school community better understand and combat the issues of sexual harassment and sexual abuse. We want to ensure that our students have all the resources available to them so that they feel supported, protected, and informed.”

No date has been reported for Wren’s next scheduled court appearance. It is also unclear whether the veteran teacher and former debate coach is currently represented by council.