‘We had no idea.’ Convicted prostitute removed from Texas school district’s sex ed council

A convicted prostitute has been removed from a Texas school district’s sex education advisory council, raising questions about accountability and oversight.

As a local parent, Ashley Ketcherside served on the School Health Advisory Council (SHAC) and volunteered in several clubs.

But when her criminal history came light, she was removed from her roles, Fox 4 Dallas reported.

Ketcherside was convicted of prostitution in 2012 and 2016, and she reportedly currently works as an escort under an alias.

Prostitution is illegal in Texas, although escorting is legal as long as it doesn’t include the purchase of sexual services.

“We had no idea what was going on in her personal life. She was always very friendly and personable,” said Godley school board trustee Kayla Lain. 

Ketcherside’s history was unearthed by local parents who were concerned with an escort creating sex ed content for their kids.  

Mary Lowe, co-founder of Families Engaged for Effective Education, said local parents became suspicious when Ketcherside claimed to own multiple businesses and discovered her escort services. 

“Some parents took it to investigate and came up with this,” Lowe said, according to Fox 4. “I believe that parents need to know.”  

“I would not want children to be subject to those type of people,” Lain added. 

The SHAC advises the Godley school board on a variety of issues, including sex education.  

According to Texas law, SHACs must advise “appropriate grade levels and methods of instruction for human sexuality instruction.”  

Instruction must “present abstinence from sexual activity as the preferred choice of behavior” and explain that abstinence is the only surefire way to “prevent pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases, and infection.” 

The Godley school district claims to run background checks on all staff and volunteers.  

But Lowe explains that prostitution might slip through the cracks since it’s classified as a misdemeanor.  

“We would think that typically if you ran a background check that those arrests would show up, and they don’t – they’re misdemeanors in the state of Texas,” said Lowe. “I think this is something that the state needs to look at in regard to how they’re screening people that participate in schools.”