A San Luis Obispo teacher is set to be fired after misconduct allegations were brought to the San Luis Coastal Unified School District late last year.
The school district’s board of trustees voted during closed session in a meeting on Tuesday evening to terminate the contract for Jeffrey Brandow.
Brandow was placed on paid leave in March, five months after the Central Coast school district learned of a student’s complaint against him.
The district previously said the complaint alleged Brandow had inappropriate behavior with a student, but district officials have declined to confirm further details of the complaint.
As of the school board’s unanimous vote on Tuesday, Brandow was placed on permanent unpaid leave.
He has 30 days to appeal the board’s decision. If he does so, the case would go to a law judge for review and could result in a hearing.
“I want to express our firm commitment to keeping students, staff and all members of our school community safe,” San Luis Coastal Superintendent Eric Prater said during the Tuesday board meeting. “I want to thank the anonymous individual who utilized the district’s ‘report a concern’ button on the website to share concerns of inappropriate conduct by one of our teachers at San Luis Obispo High School. It was because of this report that we were able to investigate the incident and respond accordingly.”
Prater added that the school board’s action is “a significant step towards accountability.” He told The Tribune that Brandow’s termination will include no settlement or payment to the teacher.
Brandow was originally hired at the school about a decade ago to be the high school’s athletic director until Marci Beddall replaced him in 2020.
After the school district learned of the student complaint in October, Brandow continued teaching and coached the boys basketball team to a league championship.
The Tribune reached out to Brandow for comment regarding the school board’s Tuesday evening decision but has not received a response.
Family of student speaks out during school board meeting
The sister of the student allegedly victimized by Brandow said during the Tuesday meeting that the school district failed to protect her sibling.
The Tribune isn’t identifying her in order to protect the identity of her sister.
“Seeing her sob and have a panic attack on my dormitory bed moments after she was interrogated by San Luis Obispo High School administrators was heartbreaking to say the least,” the woman said. “To see her senior year ripped away from her, of which I had a blast during my senior year, was heartbreaking.”
The woman said her sister was “ridiculed by her friends, and had a hard time coming to campus most days.”
“It devastates me that my sister had to be the victim to ensure that this never happens again,” she said. “But, unfortunately, it was needed to discover this teacher’s disgusting behavior and the lack of protective action our school will take for a student to everyone here.”
The teen’s mother also spoke, calling out the district for what she said was a slow response to the reports of misconduct and accusing it of protecting adults over children.
“I know this was not a zero-tolerance policy,” she said. “Instead, my 17-year-old girl, who was excited for her senior year, was alone after October. She walked among whispers and gossip.”
Prater closed his comments during the school board meeting by noting that the school district is continuing its investigation into Brandow.
Allegations against SLO High School teacher included 2018 restraining order
During the initial investigation of the student’s allegations against Brandow, the district learned of other allegations against him.
That included a 2018 restraining order application from a former KSBY employee. The restraining order, which was issued by a San Luis Obispo Superior Court judge, has since expired.
In the restraining order, the former employee alleged Brandow used his position as a high school sports director to manipulate and sexually harass her.
Brandow would show up to the woman’s home unannounced, stalked her, constantly emailed her and called her between 50 to 100 times daily, the restraining order application said.
He also left hundreds of handwritten letters at the woman’s home — some of which were enclosed in envelopes addressed from Laguna Middle School and San Luis Obispo High School, according to the application.
The behavior “causes me anxiety, stress, emotional discomfort,” the woman wrote in the application. “He has sociopathic tendencies and crazy manipulative behavior. I fear he is waiting outside my home every day.”
In July, Brandow told The Tribune he was distressed about the contents of the restraining order becoming public because of his wife and kids.
He did not comment on the other allegations against him.
