Teacher forced special needs boy to wear trash bag over clothes
A Chicago teacher isolated a 5-year-old special-needs student and forced him to wear a plastic trash bag over his clothes, his mother told the Washington Post.
Nyesha Terry said her son, Lloyd, is non-verbal and epileptic, which often causes him to drool. Due to saliva dropping onto his clothes, Terry said she sends Lloyd to school with extra clothing and bibs. Despite that, she said his teacher decided to cover him in a plastic trash bag.
Terry immediately spoke to the teacher and reminded her about the extra clothes and offered to provide the teacher with a pack of disposable gloves. She said she believed the teacher understood and the incident would never happen again.
When she stopped by the school the following day, she found her son again wearing a plastic trash bag and isolated from the rest of the class.
Terry took her son to the office to show school administrators what the teacher was doing to her son. After listening to her complaint, administrators asked her if it was the bag's appearance that bothered her about the situation. Terry said she told informed administrators that the issue had nothing to do with appearance, but a safety concern.
"He could put the bag in his mouth, he could swallow part of it or he could suffocate because of the bag. He’s isolated and I’m concerned for his safety," she said. School officials responded her concerns by informing her that no where in the school's guidelines does it say a teacher cannot put a trash bag on a student.
After her son's story received local media coverage, the school district released the following statement:
"Chicago Public Schools’ top priority is ensuring students are safe and comfortable in their learning environment. The teacher has been removed from the classroom while we conduct an investigation, and we will take all appropriate steps, including appropriate disciplinary actions.”
District officials met with Terry to discuss how Lloyd could be accommodated. After asking to have her son transferred to a new elementary school, officials accompanied Terry on several school tours.
Terry said her son latched onto her legs and looked hesitant when she dropped him off at his new school. She feels as though the entire incident caused Lloyd to feel uneasy about being in a classroom environment and believes he could have been traumatized had it continued any longer.
Contact Caitlin Lilly at clilly@reviewjournal.com. Find her on Twitter: @caitiesmith
