Parents Outraged After San Lorenzo Teacher Accused Of Slapping Student

SAN LORENZO (KPIX 5) -- Parents of children who attend an East Bay elementary school were fired up Monday after a recent incident where kids claim a substitute teacher slapped students and cursed at them.

Parents were upset over the incident and how long it took the district to send out a notification.

The school year may be winding down for its last week before summer break at Bay Elementary in San Lorenzo, but recent events are heating things up.

A teacher was removed from a classroom Friday following a confrontation where the substitute allegedly abused students both physically and verbally.

"She went to the teacher to ask her if she needed help. At that point, my daughter said she hit her hand on her head and said, 'I don't like nosy kids!'" said father Anthony Ramirez.

Parents said they weren't notified until an email went out this weekend, even though their children were asked to make a statement about what happened that day and moved to other classrooms.

The district was made aware of the incident on Friday as well.

"So at this point, we have contacted the authorities. The employee was placed on administrative leave and we have an investigation ongoing," said Julio Hernandez with the San Lorenzo School District.

The district would not say whether the substitute teacher has a history of disciplinary actions because of the ongoing investigation.

But Ramirez said is filing a grievance on behalf of his daughter to make sure the district knows how upset he is and may even transfer schools.

"She's going to school and doesn't know who to trust. I tell her to go to school, listen to them and make sure you pay attention, make sure you're doing the right things and not getting in trouble," said Ramirez. "And here these people are doing something I'm telling her not to do."

District officials said they do not know how long the investigation will take.