da "www.news.com.au" Herald Sun August 11, 2009 A FEMALE teacher charged over alleged sexual liaisons with two schoolboys has faced a Ballarat court. Michelle Dennis, in her early 30s, was charged last October with three counts of sexual penetration of a child aged under 16 and one count of committing an indecent act, the Herald Sun reports. She was immediately suspended from teaching by the Victorian Department of Education. The charges came just days after Ms Dennis was stood down from Ballarat High School after being charged with three counts of sexual penetration of another student, aged 17 or under. The new charges are understood to have come after a male former student of the school contacted police. All seven charges relate to alleged sexual encounters between Ms Dennis and two students outside the school grounds last year. A former friend of one of the boys told the court today he first met Ms Dennis when she picked up his friend from near his house in the middle of the night early last year. He told the court his friend returned later and boasted about the alleged sexual activity. He also told of text messages and images he claims were sent from Ms Dennis to the boy. Ms Dennis was a teacher at Ballarat High from 2003 to 2008. The committal hearing is continuing.
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