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A twisted teacher’s aide at a New Jersey pre-K once named “paraprofessional of the year” is accused of filming and sexually assaulting students as young as three during naptime, according to prosecutors.
Shaun Stebbins, 44, was read more than a dozen new charges as he appeared virtually in court Monday after police discovered a trove of sickening content on his electronic devices during a months-long investigation that began in the spring, ABC 7 reported.
Stebbins allegedly photographed and filmed children’s private parts in bathrooms and recorded himself performing sex acts with children — some as young as 3 or 4 years old — during nap time at Woodbine Elementary School in rural Cape May County, where he worked for more than four years.
Photos show that Stebbins was named Woodbine Elementary School’s “paraprofessional of the year” in 2024-2025.
“How can we heal from this? How can we move on so this doesn’t happen again?” Woodbine resident Victoria London said.
“There has to be more eyes and more ears, more listening,” London added. “And maybe there needs to be a better screening.”
Stebbins was fired in March when he was initially arrested and accused of sexually abusing four children, who are all siblings, in his Somers Point home for more than a decade.
His relationship to the four children was not immediately clear.
The victims allege the abuse took place from 2012 until 2025. When one of them came forward as an adult in March, it led investigators to look into any abuse at the elementary school, where Stebbins was in close contact with young kids.
He was additionally charged Friday with 29 counts of first-degree manufacturing child porn; five counts of first-degree aggravated sexual assault; 13 counts of second-degree sexual assault by sexual contact; and 14 counts of second-degree endangering the welfare of a child.
Stebbins was scheduled to appear in court again on Wednesday.
“Children are among our most vulnerable population and we have a responsibility to protect their safety and well-being,” Cape May County Prosecutor Jeffrey H. Sutherland said in a statement.
“Anyone who harms a child will be held accountable through our justice system.”
The school district did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.
