State Revokes Credential of Former Peninsula Teacher Convicted of Child Molestation
Washington’s Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction has permanently revoked the teaching certificate of Jordan Henderson, a former Evergreen Elementary School teacher convicted this year of sexually abusing four of his young students, and has permanently barred him from ever applying to teach in the state’s public schools again.
The final order, signed July 8 by Deputy Chief Legal Officer Monique Malson on behalf of state schools chief Chris Reykdal, was issued under a Washington law that requires the permanent revocation of an educator’s certificate when the holder is convicted of certain crimes against children.
Beyond revoking the credential, the order forecloses any path to reinstatement.
Henderson, who taught fourth and fifth grade at Evergreen Elementary in Lakebay, on the Key Peninsula in Pierce County, held a Washington education certificate from June 2013 until it expired June 30, 2024.
Although the certificate had already lapsed by the time the order was issued, the state’s action means he can never be re-certified to teach in Washington.
According to the order, the misconduct occurred between August 2022 and February 2024, while the certificate was valid, and involved female students who were all under the age of 12.
A Pierce County Superior Court jury found Henderson guilty on Jan. 5 of 12 counts of first-degree child molestation.
On May 8, Superior Court Judge Alicia Burton sentenced him to 198 months to life in prison on each count and ordered four of those sentences to run consecutively—a total of 66 years to life.
Judge Burton also imposed community custody upon any future release, ordered Henderson to register as a sex offender, and directed that he have no contact with the four victims or with minors, permitting only supervised contact with his own daughters until they turn 18.
The state’s disciplinary case began on April 25, 2024, when the office’s Office of Professional Practices received a complaint from Peninsula School District Superintendent Krestin Bahr reporting that Henderson had been arrested by the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office and charged with multiple felonies involving juveniles.
The district had placed Henderson on administrative leave on Feb. 26, 2024, after students reported him.
He signed a separation agreement with the district in May 2024 and left his position at the end of June that year.
Prosecutors filed their first charges—nine counts of first-degree child molestation—in April 2024 and expanded the case over the following months as additional students came forward, ultimately charging 15 counts before the jury convicted him on 12.
In its order, the state concluded there was clear and convincing evidence that Henderson had been convicted of a disqualifying crime, that he had a behavioral problem endangering the educational welfare or personal safety of students, and that his conduct demonstrated a lack of good moral character and fitness.
Weighing the 11 factors Washington uses to determine educator discipline—among them the seriousness of the acts, the harm to victims, and the young age of the children—the agency determined that permanent revocation was warranted.
Henderson, 36, had worked in the Peninsula School District for more than a decade and was a deacon at Wellspring Fellowship church in Lakebay, where his father is the lead pastor.
At his sentencing, prosecutors characterized the case as an abuse of the trust placed in him as a teacher; supporters of Henderson also attended the proceedings.
The revocation is the latest development in a case that has also drawn civil litigation against the school district.
Families of the students have sued in Pierce County Superior Court, alleging the district failed to act on earlier warning signs, and a separate federal civil-rights complaint filed in Tacoma names the district and two school administrators as defendants.
The district has said student safety remains its priority. Those cases are pending.