Former CMS high school JROTC instructor accused of sexually assaulting teen, records show
A former junior ROTC instructor at Hopewell High School was arrested Monday and charged with sexually assaulting a child, according to police and Mecklenburg County jail records.
Drayton Gilyard, 47, was charged with one felony count of indecent liberties with a 14-year-old boy and misdemeanor sexual battery, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police records show.
According to a Jan. 20 police report, the assaults had occurred since March 2019 at Gilyard’s home on Robin Crest Road in south Charlotte.
Gilyard had taught at Hopewell since August 2019, according to his LinkedIn profile. He resigned on Feb. 18 and hasn’t been on the Huntersville campus since Jan. 19, a Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools spokesperson told Queen City News on Thursday.
However, in a letter obtained by WSOC, Hopewell principal Tracey Pickard told JROTC families that CMS had suspended Gilyard and a certified JROTC instructor is serving as a substitute.
“We continue to remain one of the stellar district JROTC programs and remain committed and focused on the mission of providing a quality experience for students,” Pickard told the families.
School district officials and CMPD have not said if the victim was a student. CMS did not immediately respond to an Observer request for comment.
Gilyard co-owns Apex Fun Run, a leadership development program for Title I schools based in Columbia, according to his LinkedIn page.
“Drayton Gilyard has not been a franchisee with Apex Leadership Company since March of 2019,” Jamie Krasnov, CEO of Apex Leadership Company, told the Observer Saturday.
Gilyard’s military background dates back to 1994 when he was a non-commissioned officer working as an avionics radar repairman for the Army’s 404th Aviation Support Battalion.
JROTC is short for junior reserve officer training corps, a military-based “character development and citizenship program” for youths.
Earlier this month, Adrian Wayne Taylor, a teacher at Community House Middle School near Ballantyne, was arrested at his Matthews home on child pornography charges. Taylor, 47, is on paid suspension, the Observer previously reported.
This story was originally published February 24, 2022 at 3:09 PM.
