Teacher punished first graders with a bathroom ban, Texas officials say. She’s fired
A first grade teacher punished her students for losing a bathroom pass by not allowing them to use the restroom, according to Texas school officials and local news outlets.
The bathroom ban caused multiple accidents on Dec. 4 in the Bartlett Elementary classroom in Conroe, school officials told KHOU.
The teacher, whose name was not disclosed by the school, was fired on Dec. 6, officials said in a statement to McClatchy News.
The teacher told parents that the students lost restroom privileges because they lost a “restroom badge” in the hallway, KHOU reported.
The teacher was immediately removed from the classroom when administrators learned of the ban, officials said, according to news outlets.
“I have spoken with the parents of both students who, upsettingly, had accidents,” Bartlett Principal Charita Smith said in a letter to parents, according to KPRC. “The class will have a current staff member to serve as the substitute teacher for the remainder of the week while we complete our investigation into the matter.”
Parents shared their outrage with local news outlets.
“These kids are traumatized and humiliated. They were made fun of. They were crying, begging, pleading, and asking multiple times to go to the restroom, and they were refused,” a parent told KTRK.
Conroe is about a 40-mile drive north from Houston.
This story was originally published December 6, 2024 at 2:22 PM with the headline "Teacher punished first graders with a bathroom ban, Texas officials say. She’s fired."
