A former home economics teacher — who shot to fame with a viral student farewell video and appeared on Good Morning America in 2020 — admitted to having sex with a male high school student 20 to 30 times.
Heather Hare, 33, pleaded guilty in federal court to transporting a minor across state lines for the purpose of unlawful sexual activity and now faces up to life in prison.
Hare had sex with the victim, a male student at Bryant High School in Arkansas, 20 to 30 times during the 2021-2022 school year, including during a school trip to Washington, DC.
Before her arrest and dismissal from high school last April, Hare was cherished by her students. They even recorded a farewell video when her class was temporarily halted during the pandemic.
“It hurt me to see her so upset because she is so helpful and always so kind,” said student Bella Watkins Good morning America in 2020. ‘It was horrible to see her cry. I said, ‘I have to do something for her.’
Heather Hare, 33, who shot to fame with a viral college farewell video and appeared on Good Morning America in 2020, admitted to having sex with a male high school student 20 to 30 times
Hare had sex with the victim, a male student at Bryant High School in Arkansas, 20 to 30 times during the 2021-2022 school year, including during a class trip to Washington, D.C.
Hare turned herself in in April 2023 after several TikTok and Snapchat posts were made claiming she was involved with a student, according to local reports.
She was arrested again in July after a second student came forward, leading investigators to seek additional charges of first-degree sexual assault, Bryant police said.
Investigators revealed that Hare met the victim on the first day of his senior year and began one-on-one counseling sessions with him.
The 33-year-old teacher eventually gave the student her phone number and spoke to him via Instagram and Snapchat.
She told the victim she dreamed they were having sex and gave him her home address in Conway, Arkansas. She lived in the house with her husband and young daughter.
Between the 2021 and 2022 school years, she had sex with the victim 20 to 30 times, including multiple times at her home in Conway, in her car, her classroom and parking lots at Bryant High School.
She admitted to having sex with the victim between April 21 and April 24, 2022, when she supervised a field trip to Washington, D.C., where the victim and three other female students were present.
Hare turned herself in in April 2023 after several TikTok and Snapchat posts were made claiming she was involved with a student, according to local reports
Hare gained national attention when she appeared on Good Morning America in 2020 for a surprise video from her former students.
Her 12 students, including graduating seniors, shared selfie images saying goodbye to Hare when the course she taught was halted during the pandemic.
“Hello Mrs. Hare, I just want to thank you for literally everything you have done for me this year. You have helped me overcome so much and you have helped me through so many problems,” one student said in the tearful video.
‘I think she was very touched by the video. Everyone who knows her loves her,” said Watkins, a then-sophomore.
“It was nice to see that a lot of people care about (Ms. Hare) the way I care about her,” said another student.
Hare told the outlet at the time, “It breaks my heart because so many kids are looking for a break in their day and they love coming to my classroom. The last part was sewing. We had so many fun projects (planned) and we weren’t able to implement them.’
Hare is married and has a five-year-old daughter. Her family was also featured on a local outlet, ABC7, in October 2022, when the little girl went viral for her Halloween costumes.
Hare and her husband prepared a dozen costumes and conducted photo shoots for their daughter before Halloween.
Before her arrest and dismissal from high school last April, Hare was cherished by her students. They even recorded a farewell video when her class was temporarily halted during the pandemic
Hare gained national attention when she appeared on Good Morning America in 2020 for a surprise video from her former students
Less than a year later, Hare was indicted and charged with one count of interstate/foreign travel for prostitution/sexual activity under duress and one count of transporting a minor with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity.
U.S. Attorney Jonathan D. Ross said, “This former teacher abused her position of trust and the vulnerability of a minor and used her role to entice and entice this minor to engage in unlawful sexual activity.”
Ross added, “Our office will continue to seek severe penalties against any education professional who sexually abuses their students.”
As part of a plea agreement, the charge of interstate/foreign travel for prostitution/sexual activity under duress was dropped by prosecutors.
Hare will be sentenced at a later date, prosecutors announced. They added that she could face a minimum sentence of 10 years and a maximum of life in prison.
Prosecutors recommend she spend 13 years in prison, according to the plea deal seen by DailyMail.com.