A teacher in Wisconsin has been placed on administrative leave after arguing with a maskless student and calling him a “dummy” and a “jerk,” The Hill reports.
The teacher is an employee within the Poynette School District, and was caught on video last Tuesday arguing with the student, who was sitting on the classroom floor. In a now-viral TikTok, she can be heard telling the student he’s “one of the most disrespectful” students she’s taught, as he insists he got his COVID vaccination.
“There’s other people you can infect just because you’re vaccinated,” the teacher argued. “You should hear about how everybody talks about you. You’re a jerk.”
The student she argues with, Jimmy, appears to be a 17-year-old high schooler, according to his TikTok account tagged in the original post. The Poynette High School teacher has been placed on leave, according to the district, which confirmed the news in a Facebook post last week.
“The School District of Poynette is aware of an incident that occurred today, May 11th, involving a teacher and student at the Poynette High School,” District Administrator Matthew Shappell said in a statement. “The District is initiating an investigation and the teacher involved has been put on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation. The District contacted the parents and we are taking steps to provide the appropriate support for the student involved.”
In another video, the teacher asks the student to “be nice” as she tells him that she doesn’t “like” him.
“In a few years, I know exactly where you’re gonna be,” she says. “Because people with your attitude don’t get very far.”
The CDC announced that fully vaccinated people can take their mask off indoors and outdoors on May 13, two days after the incident took place, but school buildings in Poynette, Wisconsin require masks and will do so for the remainder of the school year.
