BEXLEY — A teacher at a suburban Columbus school district is on administrative leave after a racist image was shown behind two middle school students after they talked about Black History Month during morning video announcements, reports say.
The incident, which occurred Feb. 3, had Bexley City Schools officials scrambling to find out what happened as parents expressed outrage.
“As the superintendent of Bexley City Schools, I am deeply sorry to all students and staff who experienced this on Friday and to our families and community who have felt its impact through their children and loved ones,” Superintendent Jason Fine said in a letter sent to parents in the district. “There is no excuse that this was permitted to happen, and I assure you that I, along with our administrators and Board of Education, take this very seriously.”
According to a letter sent to parents by Bexley Middle School Principal Jason Caudill, an image of an orangutan eating a watermelon appeared on a green-screen background after students read a fact about Black History Month.
“This was and is highly offensive to our staff and students and does not align with our values as a district,” the letter says.
Fine said that a “full and thorough investigation is currently underway.” The name of the teacher who was placed on leave has not been released. It’s also unclear if anyone watched the announcements video before it was shown.
“Our district’s response to the incident is ongoing. We recognize there is much work to do and it has only begun,” Fine said.
WCMH Channel 4 reported that parents confronted school board members and officials during a meeting Wednesday, demanding that the teacher responsible for supervising announcements be fired. Fine would not comment on the students involved, WCMH reports.
“I really don’t believe that your school is doing anything about it,” a parent told the board, according to WCMH. “Because if you were, you would’ve fired that man immediately. Swift justice.”
