A California middle school teacher resigned after being accused of writing a racial slur next to a Black student’s picture on a seating chart.
Lincoln Unified School District officials are searching for an instructor to replace the teacher who faced backlash for her actions, ABC 10 reported on Friday.
The students informed their parents and officials that they saw the N-word in quotations beside their classmate’s picture. The incident happened at Sierra Middle School, and The Stockton Record identified the educator as Kelly Nordstrom, a cultural awareness and diversity teacher.
Multiple parents have said that the derogatory term was visible to their children.
“It was… certified hate speech so casually written by a teacher in a position of power,” parent Liz Manipol-Lee told ABC 10. “We’re told… the seating chart is where the teacher uses to take her notes and notate points. From my understanding, she might have heard this kid say a form of that word and very casually notated it on her clipboard. But not in the same way he said it, in the form of a racial slur.”
Per the Record, another parent called the teacher’s alleged actions “completely inappropriate,” adding that “the cultural insensitivity and sense of privilege in this situation is blatant.” The local newspaper noted that it’s unclear or has been proven that the teacher wrote the slur.
According to the report, 11 percent of Lincoln United School District students are Black. In a statement sent to ABC 10, officials condemned racism and said the incident is under investigation.
“The use of racial slurs is not allowed or tolerated in our schools, and we respond with both discipline and education when either students and staff engage in such behavior,” Superintendent Kelly Dextraze said. “However, because this matter is related to the disclosure of student disciplinary documents, we are prohibited by law from commenting on the specifics of the incident.”
