An Illinois substitute teacher pleaded guilty to having sex with her 11-year-old student during what was described as “play dates” at her home, reports said. 

Former Decatur Public Schools employee Alley Bardfield, 34, is now set to be sentenced in September after admitting to predatory criminal sexual assault, according to WCIA. 

The station, citing a lawsuit filed by the victim’s parents, said the student visited Bardfield’s home in Mt. Zion for multiple “play dates” in 2023 and 2024. 

“The victim’s mother reported noticing her son acting differently after a visit to Bardfield’s house. As a result, she checked her son’s phone and social media. In a follow up discussion with her son, he disclosed having had a sexual encounter with Bardfield while a guest at her Mt. Zion residence on March 29, 2024,” Mt. Zion police said in a statement last year. 

An exterior view of the Hope Academy school in Decatur, Ill. (Google Maps)

“The victim is a 6th grade student with DPS District 61. Alley Bardfield was a long-term substitute teacher assigned to his 6th grade class,” Mt. Zion police said. 

Bardfield reportedly was let go from her position following her arrest.  

She also admitted in police interviews to having sex with the student, giving him money in CashApp and sending him nude photos on SnapChat, according to WCIA. 

Bardfield admitted to sending the boy nude images in SnapChat, a report said. (Chesnot/Getty Images)

Bardfield faces up to 40 years in prison, reports said.