Florida teacher removed from class for allegedly striking student
ST. CLOUD, Fla. - A Florida teacher has been removed from her classroom at Lakeview Elementary School in St. Cloud after a parent’s cellphone video appears to show the teacher hitting a student in the head. Parents are furious.
"It’s scary!" said Brianna Blanton. She and her mother, Kathleen, are outraged after seeing the alleged incident all go down at Lakeview Elementary School on Wednesday. "She was in his face, and I watched her smack him in the back of the head," Kathleen explained. "I heard the thump, and his whole head went forward."
An Osceola County School District spokesperson said the teacher was removed from the classroom while an investigation takes place. Kathleen said she noticed the teacher being aggressive towards the kids.
"It makes me angry, makes me very angry," she added.
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To make matters worse, they said they told the school office two days before this incident that they believed the teacher was being aggressive. "We did say something way before this little kid got whacked in the head."
Kathleen made a post looking for the mother of the child in this video. She was able to connect with her. "The mother is extremely upset. She had to take him to the hospital. He was not feeling well and he said his head hurt."
Brianna said they want all the Lakeview Elementary parents notified. "Something’s not going on right there. There’s a whole lot of miscommunication and it's unfair."
A school district spokesperson said the principal notified everyone in the class of what happened. We have not released the name of the teacher because she has not been charged with any crime.
Still, Brianna hopes the woman is held accountable. "I think she should be charged. I don’t think that’s OK." St Cloud police are investigating.
St. Cloud police say the SRO looked at the video and viewed multiple camera angles and determined this was not a battery. While it's not criminal, we’re still waiting to hear back from the school district to see if the teacher violated any rules or procedures during the incident.