A Milwaukee Public Schools teacher at Rufus King International High School is facing backlash after a TikTok video showed him explaining that he does not allow students to leave class for bathroom breaks, water, or visits to other classrooms. The teacher said his classes run 50 minutes and that bathroom breaks eat into instructional time, telling students that anyone needing more than a passing period to use the restroom should talk to him directly.
The video, which was screen recorded and sent to FOX6 News Milwaukee, shows the teacher saying he permits only three emergency passes per year. After the clip spread online and drew criticism, the teacher's TikTok account was made private. FOX6's report does not identify the teacher by name, but confirms he works at Rufus King High School, which has an IB program and earned four out of five stars on its 2023–24 Wisconsin state report card.
District Says the Policy Isn't Official
Milwaukee Public Schools sent a letter to families clarifying that denying bathroom passes is not district policy, per the district letter cited in the same report. The Milwaukee Public Schools Parent/Student Handbook covers student rights, responsibilities, and discipline. District rules otherwise allow students to leave with a pass except during the first and last 10 minutes of class.
Milwaukee Public Schools also said students would not be disciplined for leaving class during an emergency, and that it will take appropriate action regarding the Rufus King teacher, though it said it cannot share details about personnel matters. The district's response comes as it navigates other staffing pressures — the school board approved a revised $1.6 billion budget in May that cut assistant principal positions while adding teaching staff across the district, according to WUWM 89.7 FM.
A Retired Teacher Weighs In
Tiffany Dupree-Cain, a retired Milwaukee Public Schools teacher, said she would let her students get a bathroom pass, offering a contrasting perspective to the viral video's approach.
The Medical and Legal Stakes of Restrictive Pass Rules
Medical research backs up concerns raised by critics of strict bathroom policies. A 2019 study published in the Journal of Urology found that limiting restroom use may be associated with lower urinary tract symptoms in people who delay voiding. Separately, a October 2025 report from researchers affiliated with Baylor College of Medicine found that 62% of surveyed school nurses lacked formal training on managing pediatric constipation, while half of schools relied on individual teacher discretion in the absence of uniform district-wide policies. According to a 2025 survey of school nurses published through the National Institutes of Health's PubMed Central, over 40% of respondents identified unclean bathrooms and bullying as common barriers to students' restroom access.
The American Academy of Pediatrics has updated guidance on recess emphasizing health, stress, and academic achievement, according to HealthyChildren.org. According to a 2017 study available through the National Institutes of Health's PubMed Central, students' concentration was negatively affected when toilet access was not allowed, either because they needed to go or felt anxious. Federal civil rights law provides disability protections and accommodations under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
By comparison, higher education institutions in the region have moved toward looser restroom rules. The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee established a policy in 2016 ensuring students have unrestricted access to campus restrooms based on individual needs, without a strict pass system, as reported by Media Milwaukee.
The Debate Over Pass Rules
The use of restrictive bathroom rules is a subject of debate. An unrelated case involving a teacher was reported in 2025: an April 22 report described four felony counts, while a July 15 report described three counts and a plea deal, according to FOX6 News Milwaukee.
Milwaukee Public Schools has not said whether the teacher behind the viral bathroom video will face discipline, citing its policy against discussing personnel matters. For now, the district's message to families is that its own rules, not any single teacher's, govern how and when students can leave class.
