A former Texas High School teacher has been charged in Miller County, Ark., with sexual assault in the first degree.

Carlton Bailey, 26, was arrested July 24 and charges were filed Aug 30. According to court documents, Bailey allegedly had sexual contact with an 18-year-old female student of his around March 22.

It is illegal in both Texas and Arkansas for a teacher to engage in sexual activity with a person under the age of 21 and enrolled in the school where the teacher is employed.

TISD Executive Director of Public Relations Tina Veal-Gooch said that Bailey was on a probationary teacher contract which expired on June 30. On May 15, TISD was made aware of the possibility of a sexual assault that occurred off campus. Veal-Gooch said Bailey was immediately placed on administrative leave while under investigation.

TISD police began their internal administrative investigation which led to the involvement of the Texarkana, Arkansas, Police Department, Veal-Gooch said.

Bailey was released on a $25,000 bond. If convicted, Bailey faces a prison term of six to 30 years and a fine not exceeding $15,000.

TISD conducts annual training with all employees on this type of issue through the Public Schools Work program. New employees go through a similar training during their orientation, Veal-Gooch said.

“We make every effort to protect our students by investigating the backgrounds of potential employees through reference checks and background screenings, along with a national fingerprint check,” Veal-Gooch said. “Unfortunately, people with the best backgrounds make bad choices.”