Parent Review
As…read moreparents, we feel it is important to share our experience so other families understand how a serious child safety issue was handled at Methodist Day School.
On February 12, we were informed that a photo had been taken inside the school involving our three-year-old child. In the image, an adult staff member is holding our child, smiling with their tongue out, and physically positioning our child's hand into an obscene gesture. () Our child did not initiate this action and does not understand its meaning. The photo was taken by an adult and shared digitally.
We reported this incident to school leadership the same day. From the beginning, we expected immediate action, transparency, and clear safeguards to protect children. That did not happen.
Over the next twelve days, we attended meetings, sent written communication, and made ourselves fully available by phone and email. Our contact information was provided from day one. We repeatedly asked for clear answers, accountability, and written safeguards moving forward. Those answers were never clearly provided.
The staff member involved remained employed and continued working with children. We were told the response would have been different if the image had been shared publicly, which was deeply concerning. Child safety should not depend on public exposure.
We were also told it was our decision whether to confront the staff member or take the matter to the board. That responsibility should never have been placed on parents. Issues involving staff conduct and child safety should be handled by leadership.
Because of how this was handled, we removed our child from the school on February 20. One parent resigned from employment at the school the same day, despite loving working with the children. Another teacher also resigned and removed her own child due to concerns that the staff member involved remains employed.
For clarity, there was no personal relationship between my wife and the teacher involved. They were coworkers only.
When we attempted to be heard by the school board regarding our own child, we came respectfully with written documentation. We were instructed to wait outside for over two hours and were not allowed to be present while our child was discussed. When we were finally allowed to speak, no responses or statements were made. No one reached out afterward.
Throughout this process, the incident involving a single teacher in the orange room was repeatedly minimized. Responses from school administration, board leadership, and pastoral leadership focused on controlling discussion rather than addressing the seriousness of what occurred.
All we asked for were clear answers and written safeguards moving forward. To this day, those safeguards have not been clearly documented or confirmed.
If child safety and accountability were the priority, the outcome would have looked very different. Instead, the school lost two employees and two students who did nothing wrong, while retaining the staff member involved and the leadership responsible for how parents were treated.
This does not reflect all teachers or staff. Many care deeply about children. Our concern is with leadership and how a serious child safety issue was handled after it was reported.
Parents deserve to be respected, included, and heard when decisions involve their children. Child safety should always come first.
