Teacher arrested for ‘making out’ with 11-year-old boy at school ‘moved his desk closer so she could rub his legs’ in class

The Wisconsin teacher accused of preying on an 11-year-old student allegedly moved his desk out of sight so she could rub his legs during class.

Madison Bergmann, 24, was charged with first-degree sexual assault of a child under 13 after the victim’s father reported her to River Crest Elementary School administrators and police.

The fifth grader told investigators that Bergmann would rub his thigh and calves during independent reading time, according to a criminal complaint filed Thursday in St. Croix District Court.

Due to the position of his desk in her classroom, the boy ‘did not believe any of the other kids would see it happening,’ according to the complaint.

The pre-teen told police that Bergmann kissed him several times in her classroom, either after school or while the other students were at lunch.

Alarm was raised on April 29, when the boy’s mother overheard a phone call between Bergmann and the victim. His father confiscated his phone and discovered sexually charged text messages.

In one text, Bergmann told the boy that she ‘wanted to just grab (his) face and push (him) to the floor and make out with (him),’ the complaint states.

In another text, she allegedly wrote, ‘I almost kissed you when you were on the ground today, but I got distracted by your stomach.’

The complaint shows the child’s father met with police and handed over copies of the text messages.

Bergmann was no stranger to the victim’s family, as they had gone on a ski trip together over winter break in 2023.

She told police that she got the boy’s cell phone number at the time ‘in case they somehow got separated in the ski hills,’ and alleged he called her several times ‘for no particular reason.’

When police asked about the text messages, Bergmann ‘asserted her right to counsel and the interview stopped,’ according to the complaint. She was then arrested.

Investigators searched her backpack and discovered a folder emblazoned with the victim’s name that contained several handwritten letters.

‘In her notes she tells him that she loves him, wants to kiss him, he turns her on, and that she is obsessed with him,’ the complaint states.

In one letter, Bergmann allegedly wrote, ‘One of my cousins is in the 5th grade and I can’t imagine a man talking to her how we talk. I know we have a special relationship and I do love you more than anyone in the world but I have to be the adult here and stop.’

Police also spoke to the little boy, who ‘made comments about really liking her, trusting her, feeling weird but also liking it,’ according to the complaint.

Following Bergmann’s arrest, Hudson School District Superintendent Nick Oullette issued a statement to families.

‘No Superintendent ever imagines standing before a group of parents with this news. As a leader of this school community, as a parent, this is gut-wrenching,’ he wrote. ‘I want you to know the School District is taking this very seriously. We care about each of you and your children.’

He urged parents to be patient and ‘please understand that there are things we simply cannot say given that the investigation is still ongoing’.

The district also shared a timeline with the parents of fifth-grade students detailing how the administration responded once informed of the allegations on May 1.

Around noon that day, the district learned that a parent was concerned about Bergmann’s conduct. She was removed from the classroom at 12:37 pm, with the district contacting law enforcement roughly 10 minutes later.

Bergmann was taken into custody the same day. By the end of the week she had been placed on unpaid administrative leave.

The 24-year-old appeared in court and was released on an unsecured $25,000 bond ahead of a May 30 court date.

Under the terms of her release, Bergmann can have no contact with anyone under 18 years of age. She is barred from school property and must wear an electronic monitoring device.

Bergmann, originally from St. Paul, Minnesota, had been teaching at River View since August 2022 following her graduation from the University of Wisconsin River Falls.

The 24-year-old was set to marry her fiancé, Sam Hickman, in July, but the wedding has been indefinitely postponed. The couple’s registry was also taken offline.

Hickman works in operations at Little Free Library, a Minnesota-based nonprofit that manages volunteer-led book exchange boxes. His LinkedIn page was removed amid the fallout surrounding his soon-to-be bride.

Two ‘veteran substitute teachers’ will manage Bergmann’s classroom for the remainder of the school year, according to the district.

Hudson Schools is also conducting its own investigation to determine whether actions should be taken involving employee discipline and whether district policies should be evaluated or changed.