Former 6th Grade Teacher Sentenced for Sex Crimes Against Daughter's 13-Year-Old Babysitter

Stefanie Erin Kellenberger, 41 today, had been hit with 21 third-degree felony charges in September 2024, including four counts of sexual battery and 17 counts of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor for the alleged yearslong relationship, per the Richland Source.

"I believe she is genuinely remorseful for her conduct," said defense attorney James Mayer III in court on Monday. He said that her guilty plea to all of the charges brought against her showed her taking ownership for her actions, and willingness to face the consequences.

Kellengerber was sentenced to 15 years behind bars, with the New York Post reporting that Richland County Common Pleas Court Judge Brent Robinson gave her a choice: she could either serve 12 years straight-up or agree to 15 years with the possibility of judicial release after 10.

Kellenberger opted for the second, even as Robinson emphasized that this could lead to her serving the full sentence, telling her, "Don't let anybody be confused, this is a 15-year prison sentence with the hope that you come back in 10 years and you've been a model inmate, you’ve done everything you were supposed to do, you haven't got in any trouble at all."

As part of her sentence, Kellenberger also agreed to permanently surrender her license, never again make contact with the victim, and go through five years of parole after her release. She will also have to register as a Tier III sex offender, and re-register every 90 days for the rest of her life, per the Post.

Prior to her sentencing, Kellenberg offered apologies to her victim, who was not present. "I know that during this time, you were just a child and I was an adult in a position of trust," she said in court. "I'm responsible for everything that happened between us."

"I put you in a position that no 14- or 15-year-old should ever have to be in. I’m so sorry for all of the emotional pain and hurt that I've caused you," she continued. "I hope that my guilty pleas and this sentence will provide some degree of closure for you as you move on with your life."

She also offered apologies to her own family, and her young daughter: "I deeply regret the position that I have put all of them in and the impact that this will have on my child. I fully accept the consequences of my actions and the sentence that I will be receiving today."

Richland County Prosecutor Jodie Schumacher said that Kellenberger's sentence was reached in cooperation with and in consideration of her victim, per the Richland Source. She also said that the victim is continuing with ongoing therapy as a result of the abuse.

"The defendant's position and job obligated her to prevent these offenses and in fact, if they were to occur, to even bring them to justice," she said.

She said that the victim, who had asked for Kellenberger to only serve three years, was still struggling with issues of responsibility. "The minor, the student was blaming herself," she told the court. "Because of that she did not necessarily want to see the defendant, in the victim’s words, 'Ruin her for the rest of her life.' She did not want her to go to prison for the rest of her life."

The one thing the victim did want, though, was to ensure that Kellenberger give up her teaching license forever to ensure that she would not be able to victimize anyone else, per the Manfield News Journal.

Kellenberger had been a teacher at Shelby City Schools at the time of her alleged crimes, which ranged from February 2020 to October 2021, per the News Journal. The newspaper reports that the victim was not Kellenberger's student.

After police began looking into the case against her, Kellenberger was put on paid administrative leave in February 2024. She was indicted in September and resigned her position the following month, according to the News Journal.

At the time she was placed on leave, People reports that the district's superintendent sent a letter to parents explaining they had received "unsettling" allegations against Kellenberger about sexual abuse of a minor beginning with the girl was as young as 13 years old.

According to the investigation into the former teacher, Kellenberger began grooming her then-babysitter at 13 years old. When the girl turned 14, things between them became sexual physically, with this behavior continuing until the young teen was 16 years old, the age of consent in Ohio.

While countering character statements the defense read out on behalf of the defendant, Schumacher argued, "the character references do not take into account what was happening in the library of the defendant's home. They do not take into account the gift boxes, the letters, the Valentines that were given to the victim."

If you are experiencing or witness child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. If you believe a child is in immediate danger, call 911.