A Texas school district is under fire after a 3-year-old boy was left behind on a class field trip to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo last Friday.
Now the child’s mother is blaming a teacher’s “careless” and “irresponsible” actions for the mishap.
“What if he felt like, ‘I’m not going to see my mom. My teachers left me. My friends left me,’ ” Kelsey Williams told ABC 13 of her baby boy, Karter, who got separated from his Thompson Elementary School class and left behind by his teacher. “Was he crying?”
Karter’s class was already on a bus headed back to school when a do-gooder found him wandering at the event. The man was able to reunite the toddler with another class from the school that was also visiting the rodeo. The preschooler rode back to school with them.
Williams said she’s thankful for the man’s quick thinking.
“Someone else found him, a man. I don’t know the man’s name,” she said. “I don’t know what the man looks like. I’m thankful for him, but I don’t know who that man is.”
The mother was especially frustrated by the incident, considering she had never given permission for her son to attend the field trip in the first place. It turns out a teacher’s aide had signed Karter’s permission slip.
To add insult to injury, Williams said she didn’t learn about the incident until three days after.
It was the school principal, not Karter’s teacher, who informed her of the mishap on Monday, March 9. Now she is calling for that teacher to be fired on the spot.
“Why did you not report it?” the upset mother opined. “‘For you to be so careless, irresponsible, nonchalant … I honestly don’t think she should be an educator or someone to protect children.
Williams since has met with a Houston Independent School District parent liaison regarding the incident.
School district officials addressed the matter in a statement, saying: “The district works diligently to ensure the well-being of every child entrusted to our care, as the safety of our students is always our top priority.”
It’s unclear if the teacher in question will face disciplinary action.
Atlanta Black Star reached out to HISD for comment and is awaiting a response.
Watch more in the video below.
