Former Catholic school teacher charged with child grooming didn’t meet employment requirements, Joliet Diocese says

The Diocese of Joliet Friday announced that a former Catholic school teacher charged with child grooming did not meet requirements to be a full-time teacher while he was at the school.

Jeremy Hylka obtained a substitute teaching license in January but was not enrolled in a teacher preparation program, which was required to continue teaching in a full-time position at St. Joseph Catholic School in Lockport, the diocese said in a statement.

Now, St. Joseph principal Lynne Scheffler has been placed on administrative leave while officials “examine the circumstances” regarding Hylka’s employment, the diocese said.

Hylka was fired April 28 after he was hit with traveling to meet a child and grooming charges stemming from an investigation into a Snapchat video that “possibly depicted inappropriate contact of an adult with a minor,” Joliet police have said.

Detectives tracked down and interviewed the person who posted the video, police said. The person is a 19-year-old man who, in conjunction with a group called “Save Our Siblings,” posed as a 15-year-old when communicating with Hylka.

Hylka also taught at St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church and the Cathedral of St. Raymond Nonnatus, both in Joliet, according to the diocese.