A coach at Bainbridge High School is under investigation for alleged inappropriate contact with a BHS student, officials with the Bainbridge Island School District announced Friday.

The coach is also a teacher at Sonoji Sakai Intermediate School.

District officials did not identify the teacher, but said in an announcement and a letter to parents that “there was sufficient concern that the teacher violated the district policy regarding staff/student boundaries and the policy prohibiting sexual harassment.”

District administrators learned of the allegations on Tuesday, July 12.

Police were notified the same day, officials said, and law enforcement authorities determined a criminal investigation was needed.

“We are deeply concerned about these allegations as it is our goal to protect students and maintain a school environment that supports students’ physical, emotional and academic growth,” District Superintendent Peter Bang-Knudsen said in a statement.

Bang-Knudsen also said an internal review was being conducted on how teachers are trained to interact with students.

“We are assessing our training protocols and reviewing and revising, as necessary, our policies and procedures to better ensure student safety.

“This is a difficult time for all of us and we thank the community in advance for its support and understanding,” Bang-Knudsen added.

The allegations involve only one student, district officials said.

The teacher was placed on paid administrative leave on Thursday, July 14.

Officials said the school district was cooperating with the police investigation and had also hired an independent investigator to examine the allegations of sexual harassment and inappropriate conduct.

Bainbridge Island School District Assistant Superintendent Erin Murphy said the district decided to retain an independent investigator after officials consulted with the district’s insurance pool.

That investigator has already started to look into the allegations, Murphy said.

A timeline has not been set for the completion of that investigation, but Murphy said it was being done in an expeditious manner.

Citing the ongoing investigations by both the district and police, district and police officials would not detail the genders or ages of the teacher/coach and student, or provide additional information about the teacher/coach.

Murphy also declined to detail the suspension of the teacher/coach.

Generally, she said, when an employee is suspended, the person is directed to cease any work on behalf of the district and to stay off school property. A suspension letter also generally offers an outline of the circumstances that prompted the suspension.

Bainbridge Island Police Chief Matthew Hamner said the police investigation was proceeding in a deliberate and methodical manner.

“We’re not rushing to judgment on anything,” Hamner said.

“People’s personal lives and reputations are at stake here. We want to make sure we are very thorough and complete in our investigation,” he said.

Hamner wouldn’t comment on the status of interviews with the teacher accused of misconduct or others who may be aware of the circumstances surrounding the charges. Likewise, police — and school district officials — declined to say whether the incidents of inappropriate conduct happened during the school year or after.

The police chief said it may be between four to eight weeks before the probe comes to a close.

“We’re probably midway [through the investigation],” Hamner said.

“It could be the first of October before there’s a finality,” Hamner said, but added, “it could be shorter.”

That said, the case is an important one to resolve.

“It’s a priority. It’s up at the top of the list; we want to get this done one way or the other. We want to be able to bring this to a conclusion,” he  said, and noted it was “unfair to leave this out there.”

The case is the second in as many years involving improper conduct between an employee at Bainbridge High and a BHS student.

Jessica Marie Fuchs, a first-year biology teacher at BHS, pleaded guilty late last year to felony charges of first-degree sexual misconduct with a minor and tampering with a witness, and the gross misdemeanor of communication with a minor for immoral purposes.

Fuchs, 26, was arrested after police learned she had a sexual relationship with one of her 10th-grade students, then tried to cover up the relationship after authorities learned about it in February 2015.