Teacher charged with assault after alleged discipline of students at Kitchener school
Police say 52-year-old Waterloo woman is facing two counts of assault
A local teacher is facing two counts of assault in connection to an investigation involving the discipline of students at Alpine Public School in Kitchener, Ont.
The Waterloo Regional Police Service received a report from Family and Children's Services (FACS) of the Waterloo Region on Oct. 22, which prompted an investigation into allegations that a teacher had taped two children with masking tape while in the classroom, police said in a release on Thursday.
It was a joint investigation by the service's youth protection unit and FACS.
On Thursday, police said a 52-year-old woman from Waterloo, Ont., was charged in relation to the alleged incident. The accused is set to appear in a Kitchener courtroom on Dec. 8.
Last month, police said they were conducting a criminal investigation involving allegations against a teacher at the school.
A spokesperson with the Elementary Teacher's Federation of Ontario Waterloo Region did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Family speaks out
CBC News spoke to a man who said his child, who is in the younger primary grades, was involved in the incident.
"I believe more should have been done," he told CBC News on Thursday following the announcement about the charges. The father is not being identified to protect the identity of his child.
He said he is concerned race was a factor in the incident and wants to see more charges laid.
"We are trying to cope with the situation. We are trying to comfort [our child] as much as possible and to make [our child] happy as much as possible because [our child] is going through trauma and stress related to school," he said.
"[Our child] has been through a lot," he added.
The father said the school and the school board need to do more to better protect students, including re-evaluating hiring practices.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson with the Waterloo Region District School Board said the board is aware police made an arrest in related to the reported allegations.
"The individual in question is an employee of the Waterloo Region District School Board, and when we were first made aware of the situation, the individual was assigned to home," a spokesperson said in an emailed statement.
The board said it will not be making any further comment as the matter is before the courts.