Jonathan Houck

Introduction

Jonathan Houck is a 33-year-old Bangor, Maine, man who worked as an assistant professor of exercise science and assistant cross country coach at Husson University until the school says it escorted him off campus and relieved him of his duties within an hour of learning he was under criminal investigation. Arrested on a warrant on Friday, October 30, 2026, Houck is charged with six counts of possession of sexual abuse material — child sexual abuse material — and four counts of violation of privacy, with prosecutors alleging that beyond the abuse-material counts he had secretly photographed Husson students in varying states of undress .

Background Information

Husson University is a private university in Bangor whose exercise science program trains much of the region’s fitness and clinical workforce; an assistant professorship there put Houck in routine, trusted contact with undergraduates, and his second role as assistant cross country coach extended that contact onto travel and training runs. The criminal case began in June 2026, when Dropbox alerted the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that an account bearing Houck’s username had uploaded four sexually exploitative images involving children under 16. That report started the police investigation — but prosecutors say what detectives found went further than the tip .

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation

Charged; presumption of innocence. Houck faces charges that have not been tested in court; he is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Husson says it learned of the investigation early on September 21, 2026, and that Houck was escorted from campus and relieved of his duties within an hour — “He is no longer employed by Husson University,” the school said in a statement. The arrest warrant executed October 30 charged him with six counts of possession of sexual abuse material and four counts of violation of privacy, and at his first court appearance on Monday, November 2, prosecutors laid out what they called a “rare, dangerous overlap” in his alleged conduct: an investigation that began with alleged possession of child sexual abuse materials had surfaced photographs he secretly took of some of his own Husson students, showing them in varying states of undress .

“Throughout the course of that investigation, the detectives realized that he was also preying on adult victims as well, which is unusual to have both this deviant sexual interest in both adults and children that rises to the level of criminality,” said Chelsea Lynds, the Penobscot County deputy district attorney handling the case. “He’s also offending both online and in real life. So, it is very unusual, and I would say more dangerous than your average offender” .

Public Reaction and Consequences

A judge doubled Houck’s bail to $100,000 at prosecutors’ request at the November 2 hearing. If he posts it, the conditions bar him from contact with minors, from using the internet, from the Husson campus, and require him to stay at least five miles from schools with young students — conditions so tight that he cannot return to his own Pearl Street home in Bangor, which sits one street from an elementary school. The university said it is complying with all police requests and is “in close contact with impacted students to ensure their needs are met,” a line that confirms the school treats students as victims in the case rather than bystanders to it .

Current Status

Houck remains charged with six counts of possession of sexual abuse material and four counts of violation of privacy, held on $100,000 bail after the doubling request was granted, and is no longer employed by Husson University. His bail conditions keep him off campus and away from minors and the internet while the case proceeds. The fetched coverage does not identify a defense attorney, a plea, or the next court date .

Impact on Their Career/Life

Houck’s academic and coaching career ended the moment Husson learned of the investigation — an escort off campus inside an hour, no second chance, and a termination the school announced publicly in explaining itself to students. A faculty member charged with photographing his own students converts every dorm-room fear about who holds a camera on campus into a named criminal case, and the five-mile-from-schools condition that bars him from his own home shows how the allegations reframe a professor’s ordinary life as a map of places he may no longer go .

Sources

• WMTW News 8, “Bail doubled for former Husson University professor; pictures of students found, prosecutors say,” November 2026 — source