After viewing this disturbing hallway video of a March 17 incident, I am still mystified why a special education teacher at the Tift County Pre-K Center would do this intentionally to a 4-year-old child with special needs.
I am hoping the teacher's real intent was to prod a dawdling student into the classroom and out of the hallway. However, she chose a bad way to move the child forward, one that ended her career. The fact the school district reacted immediately suggests someone in the school saw this occur and reported it right away.
Once you look at this video, I am eager to see your response. An AJC Get Schooled Facebook commenter said it appeared to him the teacher just didn't see the boy and that this was an accident. I don't think the school district saw it that way.
Stacey Beckham, director of communications for Tift County Schools, confirmed that there was an incident that occurred at the school and that the child was not injured. She said as soon as they found out, immediate action was taken and the teacher was immediately sent home that same day. After further investigation, {teacher Amelia} Stripling is no longer employed by the local school system, and the incident has been turned over to local law enforcement.
The mother of the little boy has retained an attorney.
Here is the video from WSMV Channel 4:
