Taylor teacher accused of inappropriate comments towards students
Teacher accused of inappropriate comments towards students
Parents as well as former students say the teacher has made inappropriate comments to girls for years, and they want the district to take action. Taylor School administrators confirm they are investigating this matter involving a teacher who worked for years at Taylor High School, before transferring to another building, according to officials.
TAYLOR, Mich. (FOX 2) - School district officials in Taylor say they are investigating allegations of improper conduct involving one of their veteran teachers.
Big picture view:
Parents as well as former students say the teacher has made inappropriate comments to girls for years, and they want the district to take action.
Taylor School administrators confirm they are investigating the matter involving a teacher who worked for years at Taylor High School, before transferring to another building, according to officials.
Parents and former students of the teacher tell FOX 2 he’s allegedly made suggestive comments to young girls that have made them feel targeted and uncomfortable.
One parent posted about it on social media, claiming they too were on the receiving end of such comments when they had this same teacher at a different school years earlier.
What they're saying:
That parent spoke with FOX 2 but did not want their name out there.
A former student also came forward.
This is what they said:
"I was walking with a close friend of mine back in, I’m not sure…my junior year, and he decided he was going to say, "that makes your body look really nice," to one of the female students I was walking with down the hallway, and when I dropped her off at the classroom where we were at. And I came back and I confronted him and I said, "why would you say something like that?"
And I asked him directly in his face and I said - "you are not allowed to say that about young women. Like, they look up to you to lead them into the future. You are supposed to be a teacher. And why would you do that?"
And he looked at me dead in my face and he said, "you don’t have to worry about that. Get out of my classroom."
"I’ve had several students that would come sit with me. They would skip class. They absolutely refused to go to his class. They felt very uncomfortable and unsafe just with remarks that he had made," said former staffer Ciara Sidelko. "Something needs to be done. Us as parents, we have to be the voices for these kids."
The District confirmed they are investigating and sent a statement which reads in part:
"The District investigates all matters concerning allegations of any staff members' potential misconduct or inappropriate behavior ... However, the District does not comment on individual investigations or personnel matters. ... The District has an obligation to protect both its students and staff members. Therefore, when threats of violence are made against students or staff members, such threats are reported to the police who actively investigate the threats."
The Superintendent also tells FOX 2 they are addressing threats made against the teacher as a result of this matter being discussed on social media.
Taylor Police confirmed he filed a police report claiming harassment in the wake of the viral social media post about the allegations.
The other side:
FOX 2 is not naming the teacher because he has not been charged with a crime. We spoke to him Tuesday night by phone. He denied the accusations, but declined to comment further on the record.