A substitute teacher at Whitworth-Buchanan Middle School in Murfreesboro is no longer allowed to work anywhere in Rutherford County Schools after she put a student, along with his desk, inside a classroom closet. District officials say the incident happened on Tuesday, Oct. 27, and came to light only after another student in the room emailed administrators to report what had happened.
How the Incident Came to Light
According to WKRN, a student notified school administration by email that the substitute had placed another student in the closet along with his desk. Rutherford County Schools officials say a classmate, not the student involved, flagged the behavior. WGNS Radio reports that another student reported what happened through an email, prompting school leaders to act quickly.
The district says administrators responded immediately, removing the substitute from the classroom so they could investigate. The same WKRN report notes that administration responded immediately and removed the sub from the classroom to investigate. School officials also began gathering information from students who were present in the room when the incident occurred.
What Classmates Say They Saw
Reporting from the same WKRN account indicates classmates estimated the student was in the closet for less than five minutes, though that duration comes from students' recollections rather than independent confirmation. The substitute's identity has not been made public in the reporting so far, and per the same account no name has been released.
District officials say the substitute offered an explanation for her actions. The sub said she had put the student in the closet because of an alleged behavioral issue, not because the student speaks Spanish, the station reported, attributing that account to the district. Rutherford County Schools pushed back on that justification, saying, as quoted by KKTV, “esta no es la manera en que manejamos los problemas de conducta” — this is not the way we handle behavior issues.
District Response and Substitute's Status
Rutherford County Schools said the explanation did not make the substitute's action appropriate, according to the district's statement reported by WKRN. The district has since declared the substitute ineligible to work at any of its schools going forward. KKTV quoted the district saying, “La sustituta ya no es elegible para trabajar en ninguna de nuestras escuelas” — the substitute is no longer eligible to work in any of our schools.
The district's Human Resources Department has also notified the outside staffing agency that supplies substitute teachers to Rutherford County Schools, per WKRN's reporting. That agency, Advantage xPO, responded by saying the reported behavior is unacceptable and does not meet the standards we require of our substitute teachers, according to the same report.
No Reports of Bullying, District Says
School officials told KKTV that the affected student had not reported being bullied by other students, stating that el estudiante no ha reportado problemas de acoso por parte de otros alumnos. Officials said the school also contacted the student's parent directly and notified the parents of other students who were in the classroom at the time, according to KKTV's reporting.
As WSMV later reported, the district says it does not tolerate that type of conduct from anyone working in its classrooms. For now, the substitute remains barred from every Rutherford County school; the agency that placed her said it worked with the district to address the situation.
