HSE, Hamilton Southeastern former math teacher guilty of touching child inappropriately

FISHERS, Ind. — A former central Indiana teacher will spend the next 5 years in prison after being found guilty of molesting a student in a small group room, causing her to lose interest in athletics and academics.

Ian Alexander Gray, a 40-year-old former intermediate and high school teacher for the Hamilton Southeastern School district, was sentenced Friday to 5 years in prison and 3 years probation for child molestation.

The charges

The charges against Gray stem from incidents that occurred during the 2017-18 school year while he was teaching 6th-grade math at Fall Creek Intermediate School in Fishers.

According to court documents, a juvenile victim said Gray touched her inappropriately while he was serving as one of her primary teachers. A psychologist determined she was sexually assaulted approximately ten times. 

The victim told authorities that Gray would molest her while disciplining her for minor things such as having her phone out in the halls. The victim said Gray made her sit in a small group room as punishment before he’d come in and cover the windows.

“There are blinds and paper with the ability to cover the door window due to ALICE Training,” a police report reads. “ALICE is an active shooter response training to empower individuals to use proactive options-based strategies in the face of violence.”

Behind these coverings, court documents state that Gray would sit down in a chair next to the student and repeatedly touch her inappropriately.

The victim said he started by touching her thigh, but later went on to touch her breasts and genitals. The juvenile said this started happening once per week.

Psychological effect

Gray’s arrest report details how he would not only sexually abuse the student, but mentally manipulate her as well.

The girl’s mother said Gray would tell other students that her daughter was a bad influence and they should not be friends with her. The school counselor told police he remembered the victim not wanting to go to Gray’s class because “he was too hard on her.”

The victim’s mother said the girl began self-harming and noticed several changes in her behavior, stating that the “shift was drastic” and her daughter had trouble progressing mentally and emotionally.

Court documents state there are no discipline records for that school year regarding either Gray or the student involved.

Gray was hired by HSE on Aug. 13, 2007 as a sixth-grade teacher and transferred from Fall Creek Intermediate to Riverside Junior High School on Aug. 6, 2018. He was also a coach for the track team and math bowl.

The victim’s mother said that after her 6th-grade year, her daughter began showing less interest in track and her grades in math declined. School records reviewed by police confirmed this.

Arrest and sentencing

Gray was arrested on June 22, 2021, after a psychologist working with the victim alerted the Department of Child Services. He was charged with child molestation and was found guilty on Jan. 24, 2023.

Gray, who had accumulated 36 days of jail credit prior to his sentencing on Friday, will spend the next 3 years in the Indiana Department of Corrections, followed by 2 years in residential placement in Hamilton County Corrections Center. He was sentenced to 3 years probation upon release and was issued a no-contact order.