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Recently, a photo surfaced online showing a teacher at Pennfield Middle School in Pennsylvania using tape to secure a face mask to a student. The exact circumstances leading to this incident remain unclear, but the act by the unidentified teacher sparked significant backlash from local parents.
“Regardless of your stance on masks, we can all agree that taping masks to children’s faces is unacceptable. This was not a laughing matter for the child or the parents,” expressed a member of the “North Penn Stronger Together” Facebook group.
In response to the public outcry, the North Penn School District initiated an investigation into the matter and issued a formal apology on behalf of both the district and the teacher involved. A statement from district representatives recognized the inappropriateness and unacceptability of the teacher’s actions, emphasizing that no harm was intended but the behavior was still deemed inappropriate.
During a school board meeting, North Penn School Board President Tina Stoll also extended an apology to the student and their family on behalf of the district and the school board for the incident.
Pennsylvania middle school apologizes after photo of a teacher taping a mask to a student’s face sparks outrage https://t.co/annCMFQnuj
— MSN (@MSN) January 21, 2022
The identities of the teacher and student involved in the incident have been kept confidential by the School Board. However, community members were reportedly able to identify the student and brought the matter to the attention of local authorities.
“Certain individuals took it upon themselves to address the situation, which included reaching out to local authorities and sharing this image of my son with various media outlets,” stated the student’s mother in a message provided to the school board.
She further expressed, “The events following this incident have been like a nightmare come to life.”
