A teacher at Barberton High School has been placed on paid administrative leave over reports of an inappropriate comment to a student.
Parents received a broadcast alert by phone on Tuesday afternoon from Superintendent Patty Cleary about the incident.
Cleary said in an interview Wednesday she wanted to notify parents to get out ahead of social media.
“Kids would get out on social media and we didn’t want parents to think we weren’t concerned,” she said.
A source told the Barberton Herald the teacher called a male student a racial slur. Cleary said Wednesday she thought the comment might have been made in the classroom and not directed at anyone in particular, but she was going on what she had been hearing from the principal.
She said the comment would be “offensive to anybody who would hear it” but wouldn’t confirm it was a racial slur.
There will be a meeting next week to decide what happens next.
“We’ll listen to all sides and try to do what’s best,” she said.
Cleary said she was not able to release any other information, including the teacher’s name, because of the ongoing investigation.
The Beacon Journal filed a public records request with the school district on Wednesday in an attempt to get more information about the incident and the identities of those involved.
“Because we have a process and it’s set by law and a negotiated agreement, we have to give a hearing and we have to fully investigate whenever an employee is reported to do something,” she said.
The district has been advised by an attorney that releasing any further information could compromise the process, she said.
Monica L. Thomas can be reached at 330-996-3827 or mthomas@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow her on Twitter @MLThomasABJ and https://www.facebook.com/MLThomasABJ.