Zephyrhills Mayor Steve Van Gorden Quit As School Principal Amid Sex Scandal

When the high school principal in Zephyrhills, Fla., resigned earlier this month, there was an outpouring of grief. But when it was finally disclosed that he left the school because of allegations that he offered teachers promotions in exchange for sex, the community was suddenly split. The former principal is also Zephyrhills' mayor, and a lot of people want him out.

Zephyrhills is a small, lower-middle-class town about a 40 minute-drive from Tampa, best known for the bottled water company that bears its name and a killer skydiving drop zone. Steve Van Gorden, 37, became Zephyrhills High School's principal in May 2009, and was immediately well-liked. And when the Zephyrhills Free Press mentioned Gorden's resignation on its Facebook page on Nov. 2, the response was unanimously mournful.