(CNN) – An Ohio teacher was caught on camera grabbing a kindergartner in an apparent fit of anger, and now his parents are enraged.
Anthony and Autumn Nelson are still stunned by what happened to their 6-year-old son Ian last Wednesday. In a video they provided to us, the Riverdale School kindergartner is walking down the hallway to go to the bathroom.
The surveillance camera then shows his teacher, Barb Williams, confront him as he steps out of the bathroom. The teacher grabs Ian and pins him up against the wall, then grabs him by the face. It doesn’t end there. She picks him up by his shirt and his head flops back.
The boys father, Anthony Nelson, said: “We thought it was just a little incident that happened, and that’s what the school made it out to sound like. And then all of a sudden we get this video today and this is just outrageous.”
The Nelsons say Ian had a bruise to the back of his head. A letter Tuesday from Riverdale Superintendent Eric Hoffman informed Barb Williams that she is suspended for ten days without pay.
In his words: “Your repeated use of physical force was completely unwarranted and unprofessional.”
The Nelsons want her terminated. They plan to take the video to the Hancock County Sheriff’s office to pursue criminal charges.
Ian has been moved to a different kindergarten class here at the school and seems to be happier, but his parents worry this incident will have a long-term impact on him.
“He’s scared of her. Even going to the school next year or the year after, he will still have to see her if she is present in the building. That’s probably going to scare him.” Said his mother, Autumn Nelson.
Attempts to reach the superintendent by email have not been successful. His letter to the teacher warned Williams that she’ll be fired if there is any future misconduct.
