A former 5th-12th grade band instructor, middle school music appreciation teacher and 4th-5th grade choir teacher from the Britton-Hecla School District had his teaching certificate permanently revoked April 26, according to a document recently released by the South Dakota Department of Education.

Larry Telkamp faced a complaint from three parents for several inappropriate interactions with female students, according to the document revoking his certificate, which was released last week.

The document states Telkamp asked a 16-year-old student to come into his office, shut the door behind her and apologized for looking at her cleavage. The interaction made the student “feel awkward and unsafe to the point that she quit band,” the document states.

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Telkamp was instructed by his supervisor not to have further contact with the student, but three months later, the document states that he yelled her name to get her attention, stared at her and emailed her mother stating, “This just may be the stress of the day, but I feel compelled to ask. Is there something with (student’s name) I should know about and don’t?”

The student’s mother forwarded this email to Telkamp’s supervisor, who informed Telkamp again not to contact the student or her family, according to the document. The student’s parents submitted a formal complaint with the school and a formal investigation completed by school administration found that Telkamp apologized “in an environment and using a word that was not appropriate. He also did not follow instructions from his administration,” the document states.

In another incident, a different student informed Telkamp her rib was popping out of place as a result of “doing flag,” and Telkamp touched her rib cage “from her back working his way to the front directly under (the student’s) breast,” the document states.

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He requested the student go into the band room, and the student was “so uncomfortable she brought another student with her,” to which Telkamp stated, “Oh, you need a bodyguard,” which made the student uncomfortable, the document states.

In a third incident, Telkamp grabbed a different female student’s shirt collar and bra strap and pulled her into his office, the document states.

In a fourth incident with another female band student, she wished to quit band because, “Telkamp made her feel uncomfortable because he would go behind her and hold her hands to show her how to play the mallets,” the document states.

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She told Telkamp she didn’t want to be in band anymore, and he asked her to come to his office, the document states. The student brought a friend to the office with her, but Telkamp made the friend leave the room, and he closed the door behind her, which made the student “uncomfortable and scared,” the document states.

The previous three students are sisters and their mother filed a formal complaint with the school Oct. 1, 2023. Telkamp resigned from the district the next day, according to the document.

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: SDDOE revokes music teacher’s certificate for inappropriate behavior