A married high school physical education teacher in Rhode Island faces criminal charges after admitting to sending explicit images and kissing a student, though she denies that their relationship became fully physical despite evidence suggesting otherwise.
Teacher Admits Inappropriate Contact With Student
Alisha Crins, 39, was charged Friday with two counts of third-degree sexual assault after a former student filed a complaint with Rhode Island State Police in October. The teacher admitted to investigators that she sent naked photographs and videos to the student and kissed him on two separate occasions. Crins taught the boy during his sophomore year at Ponaganset High School in Glocester, Rhode Island. According to charging documents, she found his phone number online and initiated contact by complimenting his appearance and asking to wear his sweatshirt.
The inappropriate relationship escalated when Crins invited the student to her Cranston address. Before their first kiss, which lasted nearly fifteen minutes, she reportedly told him, “I can’t believe I’m going to do this. You can’t tell anybody.” For days afterward, she sent messages praising his kissing ability and saying she couldn’t stop thinking about him. The student provided the police with multiple explicit photos and videos Crins sent while he was seventeen years old. She continued sending nude content after he turned eighteen, according to her own admission to investigators.
Conflicting Accounts of Physical Contact
The student told police that during a second meeting, Crins straddled him in the back seat of his car and engaged in sexual contact while kissing. However, the married teacher insists they were never physical, despite admitting to kissing and acknowledging that they discussed having sex. Both parties confirmed to investigators that they talked about a sexual relationship but claim it never happened. Crins eventually asked the student to stop messaging her because of her position as his teacher and her marriage, according to the affidavit.
District Takes Action After Investigation
The student graduated last spring before filing his formal complaint with state police, triggering the criminal investigation that led to charges. Foster-Glocester superintendent Dr. Renee Palazzo confirmed in October that Crins no longer works for the district. The former teacher is scheduled for arraignment on March 18 to face the sexual assault charges. The case highlights ongoing concerns about inappropriate relationships between educators and students, particularly when authority figures initiate contact and exploit their positions of trust within school communities.