A pretrial conference for former Chicopee HIgh School math teacher Donald Cushing was moved to next month.
Chicopee High School teacher Donald Cushing is seen during his arraignment in Chicopee District Court last month on rape and other sex charges.CHICOPEE - Donald Cushing, the 59-year-old special education teacher accused of having sex with one of his teen students, remained held on $150,000 bail on Friday.
A pretrial hearing for Cushing, a Chicopee High School math teacher who was promptly suspended after a student came forward and disclosed she and Cushing allegedly had sex multiple times in a closet at the school, was continued until July 6.
Cushing was charged with statutory rape and sending obscene material to a minor in connection with sending photos of his genitalia to the girl via a cell phone, according to investigators. The student told police she and Cushing engaged in a sexual relationship after exchanging cell phone numbers and ultimately intimate text messages in April and May.
Cushing was questioned by police in late May and removed from the classroom the same day, with vows from Mayor Michael D. Bissonette to strip Cushing of his teaching credentials forever.