Fla. Asst. Principal Made Middle Schooler Massage Her Feet — Then Had a Creepy Rationalization: Police - People.com

[Chris Spargo]

An assistant principal at a Florida middle school faces multiple charges after she allegedly ordered a student to rub her feet.

Dr. Keiva Lark, 53, has now been placed on administrative leave by the school and faces counts of lewd/lascivious conduct and lewd offense against a student by an authority figure, according to a probable cause affidavit obtained by PEOPLE.

A deputy with the Polk County Sheriff's Office wrote in the affidavit that he arrived at Lake Marion Creek Middle School to conduct interviews a few days after the "alleged lewd contact incident" on April 4.

The deputy wrote that he spoke with an eighth-grade student at the school who said he had been "kicked out of class" and then taken by Lark to her office.

When they arrived at Lark's office, the administrator allegedly told the student that her feet hurt, according to the affidavit. The student told the deputy that this is when he was instructed by Lark to rub her feet.

"[The student] advised he obeyed and began rubbing her feet, and she told him he was not doing it right," the affidavit reads. "Dr. Lark then demonstrated how she wanted her feet rubbed by rubbing his arms. While doing so, she stated 'I am teaching you foreplay.'"

The deputy also spoke with Mekia Scarvers, a behavioral interventionist who was also present in the room at the time.

"Scarvers confirmed Dr. Lark placed her legs across [the student's] lap with exposed bare feet and instructed [the student] to rub her feet," the affidavit claims. "She also overheard Dr. Lark instruct [the student] to rub her feet as if he loved her."

Lake Marion Creek Middle School.
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The deputy also spoke with a second eyewitness: a female student who was present at the time.

"[The female student] advised she witnessed [the student] massage Dr. Lark's feet for approximately 30 minutes and if he wasn't massaging them correctly, she would massage his biceps. [The female student] stated Lark said 'it was foreplay and preparing him for when he gets a girlfriend,'" the affidavit says. "[The female student] also stated Dr. Lark said 'she was fulfilling one of his fantasies because boys fantasize about their teachers.' [The female student] advised she felt uncomfortable and disclosed this information to the other principal when asked later on."

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The final interview was with Lark at her residence.

Lark allegedly told the deputy that she felt the need to "humble" the student because none of the other disciplinary methods she attempted had been effective, according to the affidavit.

She also "acknowledged that her behavior was inappropriate and unprofessional," wrote the deputy, but said she had no recollection of touching the boy or making any inappropriate comments.

On April 10, Lark was arrested by the PCSO and she is set to make her first court appearance on Friday afternoon.

"This is abhorrent behavior for anyone who works among students, especially an administrator. This person no longer has any business being around children," Superintendent Fred Heid of the Polk County Public School said in a statement to PEOPLE. "We commend the school principal for immediately reporting this incident, so we could take action and work with the Polk County Sheriff’s Office to protect students.”

Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd also released a statement, saying: "Dr. Lark initially told detectives that this was only a joke, and that she was just trying to humble the victim. It’s completely inappropriate for a 53-year old woman to act and talk like this to a middle school boy. It’s even worse given that this was an assistant principal and her student."

Lark does not have a lawyer assigned to her case at this time and did not respond to a request for comment.

If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual abuse, text "STRENGTH" to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.