Education

Kansas Middle School Suspends Teacher Over Alleged Racist Remarks

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Annabel Scott Contributor
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An unnamed teacher at South Middle School in Lawrence, Kansas has been suspended with pay after allegedly making racist comments during class.

The school district released a statement on Wednesday addressing a complaint made against the teacher earlier in the week. The statement says a family member of a South student alleged that racist comments had been made during class.

The statement also explains that the district is prohibited from releasing the teacher’s name and the content of the remarks in question due to confidentiality reasons.

The Lawrence Journal World reports that before the district took the issue to its human resources office, it investigated the issue and interviewed the teacher in question.

“The school administration shared information from its investigation with the district’s Human Resources Office on Tuesday, which began its own inquiry into the complaint,” the statement explains. “Sharing deep concern about these allegations, Superintendent Kyle Hayden suspended the employee, with pay, in accordance with Lawrence Board of Education Policy and to ensure a fair and complete investigation.”

According to the Kansas State Department of Education, South Middle School is the most racially diverse of the four middle schools in the Lawrence district. Roughly 42 percent of students enrolled at South are non-white.