A Texas substitute teacher is under fire after being accused of assaulting a special-needs student and trying to wash her mouth with soap.
The incident that led to the unidentified teacher’s termination happened just before 10 a.m. last Tuesday at Cambridge School, a part of the Humble Independent School District.
In a statement sent to various news outlets, the district officials in the Houston suburb said they were “shocked” and “outraged” by the substitute’s behavior.
“All school staff should care for students in a respectful manner that honors the partnership with their parents,” the statement said. “The district has reported the incident to Child Protective Services and Humble ISD Police are investigating.”
According to KPRC-TV, the district said the substitute teacher thought the 13-year-old student cursed at her, but Lashae Celestine, the child’s mother, disputed that claim. After watching security footage, she clarified that her daughter has a speech impediment.
Celestine emphasized that her daughter, who also has Down Syndrome, did not swear at the teacher.
“I didn’t hear her cuss in the video at all. I heard a teacher that sounded like she was frustrated and upset. She told my baby, ‘I’m going to wash your mouth out with soap.’ She told her what she was going to do,” Celestine told the outlet. “I heard my baby say why? That just brought me to tears because she looked at her and said why? She put the soap in my baby’s mouth.”
Celestine learned about what happened to her daughter, identified as Harmony, around 1 p.m. She received an email from the principal that stated her daughter struck the sub when she tried to wash her mouth with the soap, and the teacher allegedly “hit Harmony back,” KTRK reported.
A paraprofessional de-escalated the situation by ordering the substitute to leave the classroom and checked on Harmony. According to the report, her mother plans to press charges against the teacher, who was considered a veteran in the field.
“That video showed me she ran out of patience that day, and if you don’t have the patience to work in a classroom with special needs kids, disabled kids, or kids, period, you need to find yourself another profession,” Celestine told the outlet.
