Sacked Teacher Says She Does Not Care About Being Reported Over OnlyFans After Business Booms Online

A former Missouri substitute teacher has said she does not resent whoever reported her adult content on OnlyFans to her employer, leading to the loss of her classroom assignments.

Sheena Sittner, 42, worked in the Parkway School District near St Louis, earning about $140 (£104) a day as a substitute teacher. She told The Washington Post that she could make a similar amount in an hour on the subscription-based platform.

Her teaching assignments stopped in September after Kelly Education, the staffing contractor responsible for placing her in schools, suspended her employment account. Sittner said a manager identified her OnlyFans username and cited reports of her activity on the site.

Sittner had spent decades working with children, and her nine-year-old son was among the elementary school pupils she encountered. She said her online work was separate from her teaching responsibilities.

Her OnlyFans account features sexually explicit videos made primarily with her husband, Tim. Subscribers must be at least 18, while some requests involve collaborations with other adult performers.

The family's finances were a significant consideration. Sittner is studying criminal justice, while her two older children, aged 18 and 22, are attending college. Tuition fees, student loans and household expenses contributed to the pressure to earn additional income.

'People say, "Oh, you don't teach for the pay,"' she said. 'That's true, but bills don't stop coming just because you're passionate about the job you have. Banks don't care.'

Staffing Contractor Defends Its Response

Kelly Education said student safety remained its highest priority and that it took concerns involving substitute educators seriously. The company said it worked with school district partners 'to respond swiftly and appropriately' when concerns were raised.

Sittner believes she had been a positive role model for pupils and questions the consequences of losing her teaching work because of her online activity.

'I truly believe in freedom of speech,' she said. 'The backlash women receive for doing online content, it's absolutely awful.'

She said she never discovered who reported her account and no longer cared about their identity.

'Whoever did it was probably hoping they would ruin my life,' she said. 'In fact, they have helped it out so much that I don't even care they ratted me out.'

Publicity surrounding the dispute has increased demand for her content, requiring Tim to spend more time helping manage the account and less time on his own business, Sittner said.

Similar Case Saw Another Teacher Leave Education

Sittner's experience echoes that of Brianna Coppage, a former English teacher at St Clair High School in Missouri. In September 2023, Coppage was placed on leave after school officials discovered her OnlyFans account, which she had created to supplement her teaching income. She subsequently resigned.

Coppage said she had earned as much as $10,000 (£7,400) a month through the platform, and the publicity surrounding her case increased her subscriber numbers.

Another case involved Kristin MacDonald, a teaching assistant in British Columbia, Canada, who was dismissed in 2023 after refusing to close her adult-content account. She filed a grievance against her school district.

The cases have raised questions about how employers balance professional expectations with workers' private lives and lawful online activities. However, the circumstances differ, particularly where workplace policies, school property or professional conduct are involved.