URBANA - Testimony resumes Friday in a sentencing hearing for a former Unit 5 teacher accused of child sexual abuse. | Parents of abused kids reaction | Unit 5 hiring, screening being evaluated

Jon White, 27, a former second-grade teacher at Urbana's Thomas Paine Elementary School and once a teacher at Colene Hoose Elementary in Normal, pleaded guilty in February to abusing eight Urbana students and another two students while at Hoose.

After the Champaign County case was filed, White was charged in McLean County with two counts of predatory criminal sexual assault of a child and aggravated criminal sexual abuse involving acts that took place between October 2004 and April 2005 while he was a first-grade teacher at Hoose.

The more serious predatory assault offenses were dismissed as part of a plea agreement with prosecutors in both counties. The plea deal was finalized just days before White's trial was scheduled to open in Decatur, where the trial was moved because of extensive media coverage.

John Pye, Unit 5 assistant superintendent of operations and resources, was the first witness called Thursday.

Questioned by Champaign County State's Attorney Julia Rietz, Pye admitted that Unit 5 found a history of pornographic Web sites on White's classroom computer in October 2004. White was suspended with pay for five days and told to seek counseling following that incident, Pye said.

A routine check of school computers turned up evidence that White had paid to access a pornographic site from the school. In a meeting with White and school officials on Oct. 21, 2004, White admitted his actions, Pye said.

In April 2005, a parent complained that White had given her daughter photos of an actress that White said resembled the fifth-grade student. The mother had threatened to contact police if White was not removed from the school, Pye said.

The complaint led to another meeting between White and school officials.

"The result of that meeting was an agreement that Mr. White would not return to his classroom for the remainder of the year and he would submit his resignation from his position at Unit 5," Pye testified.

Pye went on to say "we believed it was showing a pattern of behavior we felt was inappropriate for our schools and the district."

The Unit 5 official also said no reports were made to police or welfare department officials about White's behavior at the Normal school.

A forensic computer specialist testified that links to pornographic material were found on White's home computer as well. Police took the computer after White's arrest.

Some of the links involved Web sites depicting child pornography, said special agent Jay Varda of the Department of Homeland Security.