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Memphis School Under Fire After Teacher Limits Students to 2 Bathroom, Nurse Passes Per Month

A Memphis charter school is investigation after one of its teachers was caught limiting students’ trips to the bathroom, as well as visits to the school nurse.

In a nasty letter to students, Aspire Hanley Middle School teacher “Mrs. White” explained that students are only allowed two hall passes “for the ENTIRE month” to use the restroom, get a drink of water or see the nurse. Moreover, it states that student requests to go to the aforementioned places can be denied during a class lesson.

According to Buzzfeed News, a parent of one the students posted a photo of the note to Facebook last week, but it was taken down. That didn’t stop other outraged parents from sharing it, however. It wasn’t long before photos of “Ms.White’s” note went viral.

“This shows someone with control issues who has no power or authority at home, so they bring what little power they have to the one place where they will have no resistance: the classroom,” said Jaadee Sykes, who’s Facebook friends with the parent and felt compelled to share the note on Twitter.

“It was abhorrent,” she added.

The note, dated Aug. 20, explains students have a limited amount of trips to the bathroom, nurse, water and administration office, stating, “I will only have two passes for the ENTIRE month during Focus, BOTH math blocks, community, lunch, restoration, etc.”

The agreement asks students to acknowledge that if they fail to comply with the policy, they could face “AUTOMATIC detention or a zero on whatever assignment [the student] decide[s] to walk out on.”

“Mrs. White” ends the note by acknowledging that she’s “petty” and that if students have questions about her policy, they can speak with her after class — but “nothing will change,” Buzzfeed News reported. The only students exempt from the rigid policy are those who provide a doctor’s note.

Amid the outrage, the teacher’s scathing note has sparked an internal investigation by the district, according to Local Memphis.com. Superintendent Dr. Nickalous Manning addressed the matter in a statement last week.

“Today we were notified that one of our teachers at Aspire Hanley Middle School allegedly issued an agreement between students and the teacher around permission for restricted bathroom, water and nurse visit privileges,” Manning wrote. Our staff is currently investigating the claim at this time. We want our scholars and parents to know that our focus will always be on the well-being of our scholars and we take every allegation seriously.”

A regional director for the charted school also told Buzzfeed News that “there’s no policy at our school that restricts students’ access to the bathroom or the nurses’ office.

On social media, many pointed out how the the hall pass contract could prove problematic for students who require more than two trips to the restroom.

“I always hated this shit,” one person wrote, recalling her days in school. “How are teachers allowed to keep their students from USING THE BATHROOM?? Holding it for that long could result in a UTI. On top of that, some students may be battling a UTI, on their period, etc. This needs to stop.”

“Yes, let’s all make poor children hold their bladders bc them going to the restroom is a nuisance for you,” another chimed in. “My child has my permission to walk out of whoever’s class if they tell him he cant go. Get the fuck out of here.

Watch more in the clip below.

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