A former special education teacher in Monmouth-Roseville and Galesburg schools pleaded not guilty to sexually assaulting a student.
Deborah M. Greenlief, 60, of Kirkwood, appeared Thursday in Warren County circuit court with attorney David Reid Clark for an arraignment hearing.
She is charged with four counts of criminal sexual assault of a victim between the ages of 13 and 17.
Greenlief pleaded not guilty and requested a jury trial at the hearing.
According to court documents, the assaults allegedly occurred between 2011 and 2013, though Greenlief was not arrested until January of this year.
Greenlief was employed by the Knox-Warren Special Education District and worked as a teacher at Monmouth-Roseville High School at the time of the alleged assaults.
KWSED is a special education cooperative that provides educational opportunities for students with disabilities in school districts in Knox and Warren counties.
Greenlief left the Monmouth-Roseville school district in 2016, and was then employed as a special education teacher at Galesburg High School from 2017 until early this year.
Galesburg school officials put her on leave after she was arrested Jan. 5 by Illinois State Police.
Greenlief posted bond on Jan. 10, according to court records.
In March, the Galesburg school board voted to put her on unpaid suspension.
Ninth Circuit Associate Judge Nigel Graham scheduled a status hearing in the case for July 26.
Rachel Mast is a special prosecutor assigned to the case.
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