LEWISBURG, Pa. – A Pennsylvania pre-K teacher is suspended after state police say she abused a student two months ago.
On March 6, the Lewisburg elementary school teacher dragged an upset child out of her classroom by his ankles – then almost 40 feet farther across a hallway and into another classroom, police said.
State police arrested Celina Sagan, 36, of Lewisburg earlier this week and charged her with endangering the welfare of a child, according to WNEP.
The pre-kindergarten student has a history of becoming upset in class and was kicking, screaming, and cursing right before the incident. When this particular child becomes unruly, a teacher’s aide usually takes him to another room and sits with him while he calms down.
According to court papers, the teacher’s aide reported the incident to the assistant superintendent the next day and the state’s mandated reporting system the following week.
Lewisburg Area School District’s superintendent told WNEP, “Based on the information provided and when it was provided, district staff acted appropriately.”
Parents told WNEP they thought the teacher’s behavior crossed the line.
“It’s just something that I don’t even imagine happening to my kid. It’s supposed to be a safe environment, kids learning,” said Diana Shek. “I don’t think it was very appropriate of the teacher at all, and if it was my son, I would be mad, livid.”
“My 9-year-old has been having issues at school. She’s been acting out a whole lot at school and the teacher has never once said anything about putting her hands on her,” said Whitney Edkin, who used to work in child care. “I think that’s unacceptable. It’s not OK. You don’t put your hands on anybody’s children.”
At Thursday night’s Lewisburg Area School Board meeting, school directors voted to put an unidentified employee on indefinite unpaid leave. District officials would not confirm whether that employee is Celina Sagan. As for the child, he is no longer enrolled in the Lewisburg Area School District.