Ex-teacher, Scout leader charged with sexual abuse of student
A former Girard College teacher and Boy Scout troop leader was charged Tuesday with indecent assault and related offenses for allegedly sexually abusing a minor on numerous occasions from 2018-2020.
Keith Steininger, 68, of the 3700 block of Clearwater Lane in Upland, is charged with 10 counts each of unlawful contact with a minor as a sexual offense and intercourse or sexual contact with a student. He is also charged with indecent assault of a person less than 13 years old, endangering the welfare of children, corruption of minors, criminal use of a communication facility and possessing an instrument of crime with intent.
“Sexual contact with a child is always wrong,” said District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer in a release announcing the charges. “When an adult entrusted with the care and well-being of children engages in such contact, the affront to society is even deeper.”
Steininger worked for 41 years as a teacher and leader of a Boy Scout troop at Girard College in Philadelphia before retiring in 2022. The college is a boarding school for children in grades 1-12 from families with limited resources that are headed by a single parent or guardian.
“The defendant in this case worked with children, many of whom were particularly vulnerable by virtue of coming to Girard through the foster care system,” Stollsteimer noted. “He was placed in a position of particular respect by becoming a Boy Scout troop leader. It is both heartbreaking and deeply disturbing that such an individual would take advantage of a vulnerable child.”
Representatives for Girard College did not respond to a request for comment Tuesday. Stollsteimer said there was no indication any of the alleged assaults had taken place at the school and he had not spoken with officials there.
A write-up of Steininger’s career on the Girard College website upon his retirement describes him as a “quick-witted storyteller, generous friend, and exemplary role model,” who “gave of himself every day to make the Girard community a better place.”
According to that article, Steininger had served as senior houseparent and then supervising dean of the middle school sections at Girard, and in 2010 took over as Troop Leader for Boy Scouts Troop 400, based at the college.
According to an affidavit of probable cause written by Upland Detective Cpl. Carl White and Delaware County Detective Steve Bannar:
The alleged victim’s foster mother contacted Upland Police on Jan. 25 and reported that the minor had confided that he was sexually abused by a trusted adult and caregiver over a period of two years, from 20182020, when he was 11 to 13 years old.
The abuse began after the alleged victim met Steininger while attending Girard College, she said.
The alleged victim did not wish to speak with police over the phone at that time.
In a subsequent call Feb. 13, the foster mother shared additional details that the assaults would take place when the alleged victim would stay at Steininger’s residence, mainly on weekends when the alleged victim was not in school and his biological mother had kicked him out of the house.
The assaults stopped once the alleged victim was no longer attending Girard, but Steininger had reached out twice to the boy in April and May of 2023 to see if he and other former Scouts would meet him at a restaurant in Dover, Delaware. The foster mother refused.
During a forensic interview Feb. 27, the alleged victim stated that the assaults occurred at least 10 times inside Steininger’s Upland home. He described Steininger touching his penis and being made to put his hand on Steininger’s penis.
The alleged victim was also able to describe the interior of the Clearwater Lane home where the assaults took place, including wall colors, as well as gifts Steininger had bought for him.
During a consensual phone call conducted with the Delaware County Criminal Investigation Division on April 11, the alleged victim discovered an unread text message Steininger had sent him in January.
Steininger expressed excitement to hear from the alleged victim during the phone conversation. He also acknowledged the sexual contact with the child and apologized for his actions.
Steininger said that he “did these things out of the love that he was not getting at home” and admitted that he “enjoys showing physical affection to and with other children,” the affidavit reads.
Stollsteimer commended White and Bannar for their work on the case, as well as Upland Police Chief Michael K. Irey, the Child Advocacy Center of Delaware County, and the foster parent of the victim for contacting authorities as soon as she became aware of the alleged abuse.
“It is a testament to the foster parents’ degree of engagement with the victim that he trusted her with this intimate information, and that the victim trusted her to help him navigate the legal process,” said Stollsteimer. “Sadly, we believe that — given the defendant’s long tenure working with children — it is very likely that additional victims will come forward.”
Steininger was preliminarily arraigned Tuesday before Magisterial District Judge Sloan Walker, who set bail at 10% of $250,000.
Steininger was remanded to the county jail in Concord awaiting a May 2 preliminary hearing before Magisterial District Judge Andrew Goldberg. No defense attorney is listed on online court records.
Anyone with information on other possible victims is urged to contact the Upland Police Department at 610-872-3040, extension 207, or Bannar at 610-891-4118.