🔴 Teacher charged with sex assault of teen

🔴 Victim was middle school student, police say

🔴 Sexual contact allegedly happened in school, among places


 GARFIELD — A 46-year-old married art teacher has been accused of sexually assaulting a teen student.

The sexual assaults occurred multiple times in several locations, including at school, officials said.

Amy Dovidio, of Pompton Plains, was arrested on Friday on charges that include aggravated sexual assault, endangering the welfare of a child and criminal sexual contact, according to Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella.

Garfield Middle School (Google Maps)
Garfield Middle School (Google Maps)
loading...

Garfield police contacted the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Special Victims Unit on Feb. 10, after receiving a report of a teacher engaging in sexual conduct with a student at Garfield Middle School.

The prosecutor's office said that "while previously employed by the Garfield School District as a teacher," Dovidio had engaged in sexual conduct with a student between the ages of 13 and 17.

Bergen County
Canva
loading...

A message to Garfield school administrators about the status of her employment was not immediately answered on Tuesday.

The sexual conduct happened inside Garfield Middle School, as well as at a private residence in Cedar Grove, and within a parked vehicle at locations in Bergen, Essex, and Passaic Counties, Mussella said.

Board of Education records show "Amy D’Ovidio" was hired as a salaried art teacher at Garfield Middle School in 2012.

Before that, she had also served as a substitute teacher within the district.

Dovidio has been charged with first-degree aggravated sexual assault, as well as second-degree counts of sexual assault and endangering the welfare of a child.

She also faced third-degree aggravated criminal sexual contact and fourth-degree criminal sexual contact.

As of Tuesday, Dovidio was being held at Bergen County Jail, pending a first court appearance.

NJ 'perv' teachers, coaches busted in the past two years

There have been a number of educators, coaches and private teachers facing criminal charges for sexual offenses around New Jersey, between 2023 and 2022 alone.

Gallery Credit: Erin Vogt

NJ teachers and educators caught in sex crime busts

Over the past several years, state lawmakers have dealt with accused child predators among ranks of teachers and educators.

The following individuals were arrested and charged in 2021 and several years earlier. Some were convicted and sentenced to prison. Others have accepted plea deals for probation and some cases were still pending.

Gallery Credit: Erin Vogt

Report a correction 👈 | 👉 Contact our newsroom

NJ towns with the highest STD rates in 2022

These towns had the highest rate of sexually transmitted infections per every 1,000 residents. The data was compiled by the state Department of Health for the year 2022, the most recent year for which statistics were available in February 2022. For some diseases, a zero appears because the state suppressed the data because it failed to meet a particular standard.

Gallery Credit: New Jersey 101.5

LOOK: Counties with the highest unemployment in New Jersey

Stacker compiled a list of the counties with the highest unemployment in New Jersey using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Counties are ranked by unemployment rate in November 2023.

Gallery Credit: Stacker

Top 30 schools most violent schools in New Jersey

These are the schools in New Jersey with the highest rates of violence. The rankings are based on the annual School Performance Reports for the 2021-22 school year. New Jersey 101.5 ranked the schools based on the rate of reported violent incidents per 100 students. Schools with enrolment less than 100 are excluded.

Gallery Credit: New Jersey 101.5