§ 573.550 RSMo – Giving Explicit Material to a Student in Missouri

Posted by Christopher Combs on July 22, 2025

573.550. Providing explicit sexual material to a student, offense of — penalty — definitions

School staff can’t give students sexually explicit images or materials

It’s a crime for school employees or guests to give students sexual images or videos, unless the material is part of a valid educational or artistic program.

1. A person commits providing explicit sexual material to a student if they work with a public or private school in an official role and, knowing what the material is, they:

Give, assign, loan, distribute, or push a student to accept sexual material; or
Have that material with the intent to give or push it on a student.

2. Providing explicit sexual material to a student is a class A misdemeanor.

3. Definitions:

(1) “Explicit sexual material”: Images or videos showing things like masturbation, sexual acts, stimulation of genitals, or abuse. This does not include:
- Serious works of art,
- Anthropological content, or
- Science and health materials used in classes like biology or sex education.
(2) “Person affiliated with a school in an official capacity”: Anyone officially involved with a school, including teachers, administrators, librarians, counselors, coaches, substitute teachers, police officers assigned to schools, guest speakers, bus drivers, and more. This does not include students.

View the full statute here