A teacher at a Gainesville daycare was arrested after police say she physically abused one of her students.
H, 48, was arrested after officers received a call reporting child abuse. The caller told officers that the previous Friday, she picked her son up from Small World Daycare on Northwest 4th Street, and he repeatedly told her his teacher hit him in the face.
Investigators say video footage from that day shows H angling her body away from security cameras at the school to conceal the abuse. At least one video shows her shoving the student, with his head hitting a metal trash can.
H was fired from the daycare on Monday after being confronted with the footage.
She was booked into the Alachua County Jail on Wednesday on the Charge of child abuse without great bodily harm. No bond was set as of this report.
Small World Daycare provided the following statement to TV20:
Small World Daycare is deeply disturbed by the conduct depicted in surveillance footage involving a now former employee and a child in our care.
After leadership reviewed the footage, the employee was discharged and her employment was immediately terminated. We are cooperating fully with law enforcement and the appropriate regulatory authorities as their investigations continue, as our first concern is for the child and the child’s family.
Small World Daycare maintains cameras in its classrooms and surveillance coverage throughout the facility. In this situation, that system provided objective documentation that allowed leadership to determine what occurred and take decisive action. The incident underscores the importance of surveillance as a safety and accountability tool, although cameras can never replace attentive supervision, proper training and the responsibility of every employee to protect the children entrusted to our care.
As an immediate action, Small World Daycare will be closed to all enrolled families tomorrow, Friday, July 31, so every staff member can participate in mandatory Child Safety, Mandatory Reporting and Positive Guidance Training. This center-wide retraining will reinforce reporting obligations, developmentally appropriate guidance practices and the standards for safe, respectful interactions with children. We recognize that this closure may inconvenience our families; however, this critical training and safety review cannot wait. At Small World Daycare, the safety, dignity and well-being of every child entrusted to our care remain our highest priority and the standard guiding every decision we make.
B, Owner, & J, Director, Small World Daycare & Learning Center
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Source: Wcjb
