Proviso West cafeteria worker accused of sex with student held on $25K bond

A cafeteria monitor at a west suburban high school accused of having sex with an underage male student was ordered held on a $25,000 bond in court Thursday.

Joi Taylor, 32, of Chicago is charged with criminal sexual assault in a position of authority and indecent solicitation of a child, according to Hillside police.

Taylor was hired as a lunchroom monitor at Proviso West high School in March, according to prosecutors. Shortly after being hired, she met a 16-year-old male student and the two exchanged phone numbers.

The two began calling each other and using an application that allowed them to see each other during the conversations, prosecutors said. During most of the calls, Taylor would appear naked from the waist up and would masturbate while talking to the teen.

Later in March, Taylor called the student one day before first period class and asked him to meet for sex, prosecutors said. She met him in the school parking lot and drove them to a nearby church parking lot, where she performed a sex act on the student. She then drove him back to school.

Authorities learned of the relationship when the school’s police liaison was informed of possible sexual conduct involving students and a school employee on Tuesday, according to Hillside police.

Judge Ramon Ocasio ordered Taylor held on a $25,000 bond in a Maywood courthouse on Thursday. She is next scheduled to appear in court June 5.