Ohio LifeWise worker fired over past student sexting accusations
OBERLIN, Ohio (WCMH) – A LifeWise chapter’s leader was fired Thursday after growing attention on her past termination from a school over sexual misconduct allegations.
Renee Beck, a former Ohio educator and director for LifeWise Firelands, was fired from her position as a Language Arts teacher in the Loudonville-Perrysville School District in 2018 after multiple allegations of inappropriate conduct with students, including “abuse of a minor student.” Facing disciplinary proceedings from the state board of education, records show Beck voluntarily surrendered her teaching license in 2019.
In a now-deleted post from April 11, LifeWise announced Beck would be serving as director of the new branch for Firelands Local School District in Oberlin. The Hilliard-based company provides education on Christianity to public school students during the school day in accordance with federal law. Recently, the group made headlines for suing an Indiana man with the group Parents Against LifeWise for copyright infringement after he posted their curriculum online.
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When NBC4 asked LifeWise representatives from its central Ohio headquarters about Beck’s past on Wednesday, they said they had placed Beck on administrative leave while they investigated. By Thursday, CEO Joel Penton took that a step further.
“We have since learned that while no charges had been filed and she didn’t have a criminal record, she failed to disclose important information to LifeWise staff about her employment history,” Penton said. “We have terminated her employment.”
As of five weeks ago, the Firelands chapter of LifeWise had its launch planned for Sept. 9, according to a LifeWise Academy Facebook comment. Beck was removed from the LifeWise website, where she was listed as the director, on Thursday. But her company email address remained in the online LifeWise Firelands permission slip, which grants parental permission for students to take part in the off-campus Bible studies, as of 1:30 p.m.
NBC4 obtained the Loudonville-Perrysville Board of Education’s 2018 resolution to terminate Beck, which showed she was accused of sending messages of “a sexual and explicit nature” to minors. The board’s document also accused her of communicating with students despite warnings from the district, including an “inappropriate photo.”
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LifeWise wrote on its website that all volunteers, staff and board members undergo a “comprehensive background screening” when they are hired. The company cites a third party, ProScreening, as the group that handles the screenings. According to ProScreening’s website, it conducts all background checks virtually.
Although the superintendent of Loudonville-Perrysville schools at the time, Catherine Puster, told The Daily Record the case was given to the Loudonville Police Department, Beck has no criminal history and does not appear in the Ohio sex offender registry. A search of Ashland County court records did not turn up any court proceedings involving Beck, nor any guilty verdict against her. NBC4 contacted the Village of Loudonville via email with a records request, but its website said the local clerks require an in-person visit to grant them.
In a comment deleted Wednesday night, an unknown user spoke on behalf of the Firelands LifeWise chapter through its Facebook page, denying the allegations.
“This accusation was an egregious falsity that resulted in no trial,” the comment read. “She passed a background check before she was given the position and does not deserve to endure more slandering of her reputation based on these falsities.”
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Within hours of making the comment, an admin of the LifeWise Fireland Facebook account deleted the page entirely. LifeWise’s leadership did not mention any statements from the Fireland account, which is separate from their primary Facebook page.
Beck neither demanded the hearing she was entitled to under Ohio law, nor disputed the allegations during the termination process, according to the resolution. Beck submitted a letter of resignation after she was placed on administrative leave in May of 2018, but the Loudonville-Perrysville board elected to terminate her instead of accepting her resignation.
In 2024, however, Beck has filed two permanent non-tax certificates with the state, according to Ohio’s board of education. The state’s education law stipulates that permanent non-tax certificates allow for teaching, administration and supervision in nonpublic schools in Ohio. The first, which she filed with Loudonville-Perrysville, was declined. The second is awaiting signatures from First Baptist Church, and was filed June 3, records show.
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