A Wisconsin middle school is being investigated after allegations that staff members physically and sexually assaulted a 13-year-old boy with special needs.
In a post to social media that has been shared more than 24,000 times, a mother from Madison alleged her son was assaulted at the home of an employee of Whitehorse Middle School. In the post, the mother named the school employees and gave out their addresses.
The Madison Metropolitan School District confirmed on Sunday that it was aware of the post and was investigating the allegations. Sgt. Patricia Drury of the Madison Police Department told The Wisconsin State Journal that the incident is under investigation.
“The Whitehorse Middle School leadership team, MMSD administration, and the Office of School Safety are working closely together and following our district’s policies and procedures in responding to this matter. This has also been reported to law enforcement,” they said in a statement.
The mother alleged in her post that her son was taken to a staff member’s house. She said she ascertained this thanks to his GPS monitoring unit.
The woman claims that when she went to the school to complain, the staff called the police on her and accused her of trespassing.
The allegations were posted by another Facebook user who claimed to be the woman’s sister-in-law. There are more than 1,900 comments on the post, with some even calling for violence against the teachers.
The listed house is not owned by either of the employees, according to the Madison assessor’s online database. The homeowner, Al Barber, told the State Journal that neither of the listed teachers had any association with the property.
“I have zero to do with the school,” he said.
“I have a family that I’ve got to protect … it's just an ordinary family here that has nothing to do with the school, nothing to do with any of these people. I just want to make sure we're safe and secure here.”
The Madison Metropolitan School District board president, Nichelle Nichols, and Superintendent Dr. Joe Gothard spoke about recent events in the district, including a physical attack on a student at West High School last week.
The incident on Wednesday resulted in a student being hospitalised after a fight at Madison West High School.
“Our top priority is, and always will be, the safety and emotional well-being of every student and staff. We are committed to providing safe, supportive and inclusive learning environments for all of our students,” they said.
The statement added that both incidents were under a thorough review by both the district and the Madison Police Department.
“When incidents do occur, regardless of the precautions taken, the impact is felt deeply by all of us. In these instances, our hearts go out to any student or staff member who experienced a situation where they were injured or felt unsafe,” they said.
“No one in our schools should be in these situations or feel that way.”
