Case of Andrew Brian Goldstein

Case of Andrew Brian Goldstein

(AKA: Andy Goldstein, Andrew Goldstein, Andrew B. Goldstein)

Greenville, SC

Kindergarten Teacher - Pinellas, FL

Kindergarten Teacher and Softball Coach - Berkeley Preparatory School, Tampa, FL

Camp Director - Camper's Corner
Senior Counselor - Golda-Meir/Kent Jewish Center, Clearwater, FL
Softball and Soccer Coach - Golda-Meir/Kent Jewish Center, Clearwater, FL
Sunday Cchool Teacher - Temple Ahavat Shalom, Palm Harbor, FL

Oldsmar FL

Convicted of possession of child pornography and unlawful sexual activity with certain minors.  

When arrested, Goldstein was employed as a kindergarten teacher and coach at Berkeley Preparatory School

Detectives began an investigation into Andrew Brian Goldstein, who was 29, of Oldsmar was arrested after someone complained that he had inappropriate Internet communications with teenage girls.

Detectives seized computer files depicting child pornography, authorities said.

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Table of Contents:

2006

1. Berkeley School Faculty (02/25/2006)
2. Tampa kindergarten teacher faces child porn charges  (03/09/2006)
3. Increasingly, Male Teachers Under Scrutiny (04/10/2006)
4. Male kindergarten teachers enduring more dirty looks (04/17/2006)

2007

1. National Sex Offender Regsitry  (04/11/2007)

 2013 

1. National Sex Offender Regsitry  (10/16/2013)

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Tampa kindergarten teacher faces child porn charges 
ABC News - March 9, 2006

TAMPA - A Tampa elementary school teacher was arrested late Wednesday on child porn charges, and now detectives are warning parents on both sides of the bay to check their kids' computer usage.

Pinellas County deputies say Clearwater detectives received a tip on Tuesday that Andrew Brian Goldsteinwas involved in inappropriate online communications with teenage girls. Detectives with the North Florida Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force investigated and searched his Oldsmar home Wednesday evening.

During that search, deputies say they found child pornography on Goldstein's computer. The 29-year-old was arrested on the spot and charged with one count of possession of child pornography.

Goldstein is a kindergarten teacher and softball coach at Berkeley Preparatory School in Tampa. This morning, the school emailed a letter to parents informing them of the arrest and announcing that Goldstein had been fired.

"Mr. Goldstein has been separated from the school, effective immediately. We are working closely with the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office. At this point in time, there is no indication that his acts were brought onto the school campus or that they involved a student," school spokeswoman Heather Mackin told Action News.

Parent after parent at the school said they were surprised by the allegations, callingGoldstein an exceptional teacher.

"I'm shocked. I'm just totally shocked," Anne Hull offered.

"They both loved him. They enjoyed him very much as a teacher. We had no controversy whatsoever there," added Marja Wolf, whose two children both had Goldstein for kindergarten.

Goldstein also was a counselor at the Golda-Meir/Kent Jewish Center in Clearwater. According to the center's website, he served as senior counselor there for the last several years and coached softball and soccer. He was involved with the center's summer camp for the last 14 years and also taught Sunday school at Temple Ahavat Shalom in Palm Harbor.

Investigators believe Goldstein communicated online using the AOL Instant Messenger screen name "CDMANG." Detectives say parents should check their children's AOL buddy list to see if they have received any communications from someone using that name.

"I think this is, although an unfortunate incident, a good opportunity for parents to sit down with their children and reinforce social responsibility on the internet," Mackin added.

Anyone who thinks their child may have had contact with Goldstein online should contact Pinellas County detectives.

Goldstein, meanwhile, was out of jail on $10,000 bond. No one answered the door at his apartment Thursday.

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Increasingly, Male Teachers Under Scrutiny

By Steven Isbitts

TBO News - April 10, 2006

ST. PETERSBURG - In an era of highly publicized sex crimes against children, male kindergarten teachers have become a target for people suspicious of men who work with young children.

Some local teachers say they take questions from peers about their career motivation and, sometimes, from students' parents. Many have sensed an increase in looks of suspicion shot their way.

Thanks to those reactions, men who hug, nurture and mold wide-eyed 5-year-olds for a living are quick to defend their integrity and career choice. Some in the small local fraternity of male kindergarten teachers lately have raised their guard.

On March 10, they took a punch to their collective gut when Andrew Goldstein, a kindergarten teacher at Berkeley Preparatory School in Tampa, was arrested on a charge of sexual performance of a child.

Goldstein, 29, was in possession of a compact disc containing videos of naked prepubescent girls posed in sexually provocative positions and engaged in sexual activity, according to a jail affidavit.

"Right away, I felt that the negative press would impact males in our profession," said Samuel Williams, 38, a kindergarten teacher at Ippolito Elementary School in Riverview.

"I kind of look at it as I have to counteract that publicity and that behavior every day," said Williams, who began teaching three years ago after an investment banking career.

"I have had many people ask me why I want to teach little kids, but they ask as if there's something inappropriate in my motivation. There's a real double standard."

Dan Hodges, 56, a kindergarten teacher at Mount Vernon Elementary in St. Petersburg, said the Goldsteinarrest was a wake-up call to avoid behavior that could arouse suspicion.

"People should not just judge the group on one incident, but that happens," said Hodges, an Air Force veteran and former landscaping business owner.

"It's tough because kindergarten has never been a man's job," he said. "When I came back to teaching, I had to have a talk with myself. I had to ask myself what people would think and, 'Am I going to turn into [Mr.] Rogers?'"

Requests For Female Teachers

Negative comments and raised eyebrows also have affected aspiring male kindergarten teachers in recent years, said Pam Fleege, associate professor of early childhood education at the University of South Florida.

"It's very sad. Male students have come to me after they've been challenged by their own families and friends," Fleege said. "Some are accused of being pedophiles. But they mostly get a lot of, 'What are you going to say when a parent confronts you?'"

Confrontations with suspicious parents are rare, teachers say. That could be because parents who are uncomfortable with a man teaching their children often request a female teacher.

Those requests are honored every year by Carol Hughes, principal of Leila G. Davis Elementary in Clearwater. She leads the only Pinellas County or Hillsborough County public school with two male kindergarten teachers.

Tamara Lowe, whose son was in Goldstein's kindergarten class years ago, said that when her son was assigned to Goldstein she contacted Berkley Prep officials to "express concern about the wisdom of having a young man teach kindergarten."

If a male teacher encounters fearful parents, the key is to involve them in the class as much as possible, said Brian Esparza, who teaches at Leila G. Davis.

"You just have to get to know them, let them get to know you, and win them over," Esparza said. "You get those kinds of parents, but I hear a lot more of the flip side, people happy that their child has a male role model in kindergarten."

Principals take many requests to place children with male kindergarten teachers. That opportunity, though, is available at a small percentage of schools.

In Pinellas, eight of 418 kindergarten teachers, or almost 2 percent, are men. In Hillsborough, there are 13 men and 764 women, again almost 2 percent

In Pasco County, the numbers are higher than the 9 percent national average. That nationwide number, though, is at a 40-year low, the National Education Association says.

Of the 884 Pasco kindergarten teachers, 105 are men, almost 12 percent. In Pasco, kindergarten, first- and second-grade students are educated together, based on their achievement levels.

Pasco Credits Recruitment

Renee Sedlak, Pasco's director of human resources, thinks her district has attracted more men via extensive out-of-state recruiting. Male elementary education graduates are more common outside Florida universities, she said.

It is critical to have more men teaching kindergarten, local school administrators and male kindergarten teachers say, especially with the growing number of children from single-mother households. But a teacher shortage, it seems, has quashed efforts to target a diverse teaching staff.

"At this point, we're just looking for any qualified teacher," said Kim Swartzel, a Pinellas recruiter.

Local districts do not have recruiting strategies to bring in more male teachers.

"Most districts think diversity is about people of color rather than males in elementary school, and that's a shame," said Clayton Wilcox, Pinellas school superintendent.

"Society didn't have the same fixation on child abuse issues years ago. That has to be one of the factors pushing men out of the lower grades."

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Male kindergarten teachers enduring more dirty looks

A Tampa teacher's arrest on child-pornography charges fules parents concerns

By Steven Isbitts

Tampa Times - April 17, 2006

ST. PETERSBURG -- In an era of highly publicized sex crimes against children, male kindergarten teachers have become a target for people suspicious of men who work with small children.

Some teachers say they take questions about their career motivation from peers and, sometimes, from parents. Many sense an increase in suspicious looks shot their way.

Thanks to those reactions, men who hug, nurture and mold wide-eyed 5-year-olds for a living are quick to defend their integrity and career choice. Some male kindergarten teachers lately have raised their guard.

On March 10, Andrew Goldstein, a kindergarten teacher at Berkeley Preparatory School in Tampa, was arrested on a charge of sexual performance of a child.

Goldstein, 29, was in possession of a compact disc containing videos of naked prepubescent girls posed in sexually provocative positions and engaged in sexual activity, according to a jail affidavit.

"Right away, I felt that the negative press would impact males in our profession," said Samuel Williams, 38, a kindergarten teacher at Ippolito Elementary School in Riverview.

"I kind of look at it as I have to counteract that publicity and that behavior every day," said Williams, who began teaching three years ago.

"I have had many people ask me why I want to teach little kids, but they ask as if there's something inappropriate in my motivation. There's a real double standard."

Dan Hodges, 56, a kindergarten teacher at Mount Vernon Elementary in St. Petersburg, said the Goldstein arrest was a wake-up call to avoid behavior that arouses suspicion.

"People should not just judge the group on one incident, but that happens," said Hodges, an Air Force veteran.

"It's tough because kindergarten has never been a man's job," he said. "When I came back to teaching, I had to have a talk with myself. I had to ask myself what people would think and, 'Am I going to turn into [Mr.] Rogers?' "

Negative comments and raised eyebrows also have affected aspiring male kindergarten teachers in recent years, said Pam Fleege, associate professor of early-childhood education at the University of South Florida.

"It's very sad. Male students have come to me after they've been challenged by their own families and friends," Fleege said.

"Some are accused of being pedophiles," Fleege said. "But they mostly get a lot of, 'What are you going to say when a parent confronts you?' "

Confrontations with suspicious parents are rare, teachers say. That could be because parents who are uncomfortable with a male teacher often request a female teacher.

Those requests are honored every year by Carol Hughes, principal of Leila G. Davis Elementary in Clearwater.

Hughes leads the only Pinellas County or Hillsborough County public school with two male kindergarten teachers.

Tamara Lowe, whose son was in Goldstein's class years ago, said when her son was assigned to Goldstein she contacted Berkeley Prep officials to "express concern about the wisdom of having a young man teach kindergarten."

If a male teacher encounters fearful parents , the key is to involve them in the class as much as possible, said Brian Esparza, who teaches at Leila G. Davis.

"You just have to get to know them, let them get to know you and win them over," Esparza said. "You get those kinds of parents, but I hear a lot more of the flip side, people happy that their child has a male role mode."

Principals take many requests to place children with male kindergarten teachers.

That opportunity, though, is available at a small percentage of schools -- 9 percent of kindergarten teachers nationally are men.

It is critical to have more men teaching kindergarten, local school administrators and male kindergarten teachers say, especially with the growing number of children from single-mother households.

A teacher shortage, however, has quashed efforts to target a diverse teaching staff.

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Berkeley School Faculty

February 25, 2006

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National Sex Offender Registry

Florida Department of Law Enforcement - Sexual Offender

As of April 11, 2007

Picture of an Offender or Predator

ANDREW BRIAN GOLDSTEIN

Date Of Photo: 08/21/2006

Designation: Sexual Offender

Name: ANDREW BRIAN GOLDSTEIN

Status: Community Control, Department of Corrections #: R48770

Date of Birth: 09/20/1976

Race : White

Sex: Male

Hair: Blond

Eyes: Hazel

Height: 5'05"

Weight: 190 lbs

GOLDSTEIN is registered as a Sexual Offender.

Positive identification cannot be established unless a fingerprint comparison is made.

Aliases: Andrew Goldstein

Scars, Marks & Tattoos: Not Available

Address Information: 2220 Muirfield Way Oldsmar FL 34677-1941 Pinellas Source: Dept. of Corrections

Received: 04/13/2007

Type of Address: Permanent

Crime Information - Qualifying Offenses

Adjudication Date: 08/21/2006

Crime Description: POSS OF PHOTO/PICTURE SHOWING SEXUAL PERFORMANCE BY A CHILD; F.S. 827.071(5) (2 COUNTS) / Unlawful Sexual Activity with Certain Minors 16/17 yr old; F.S. 794.05(1)

Court Case Number: 0605007

Jurisdiction & State: PINELLAS, FL

Adjudication:  Guilty/convict

Victim Information

Gender:  Unknown

Minor:  Yes

If further information is needed, please contact the Florida Department of Law Enforcement's Sexual Offender/Predator Unit at (1-888-357-7332) between the hours of 8am and 6:30pm, Monday through Friday.

Positive identification cannot be established unless a fingerprint comparison is made.

Any person who misuses public records information relating to a sexual predator, as defined in this section, or a sexual offender, commits a misdemeanor of the first degree. Please see 775.21(10)(c) for more information.

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National Sex Offender Registry

October 16, 2013

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