Yemaya Lyles said her son Antonio Alexander III used to love going to Pine Street Elementary School in Rockdale County.
Antonio, 9, is autistic and mostly nonverbal, but his mother could see his excitement as he ran to the bus each morning. Then the family moved, and Lyles started dropping her son off at school and saw firsthand how happily he and his teachers greeted each other.
But Antonio hasn’t been back at school for a month, and Lyles said the prospect of returning makes him scared.
Lyles and her attorney Kianna Chennault said in a news conference Tuesday in Conyers that Antonio was manhandled by a paraprofessional in his classroom on Nov. 10. Lyles was informed three days later and immediately removed Antonio from school.
She is now demanding the district improve its protocols and training for staff who work with special needs students and communicate better with parents after their student may have been harmed. Lyles and Chennault outlined demands, such as consistent performance reviews of paraprofessionals while they’re in the classroom and easier access for parents to footage of special needs classrooms.
The paraprofessional, Arie Jones, was fired, according to Chennault, and the district confirmed that Jones’ last day in the school was Nov. 14. The Rockdale County Sheriff’s Office said there is an active warrant for Jones’ arrest but would not state the charges. Chennault said he was initially charged with simple battery, and that has been updated to cruelty to children.
Lyles reviewed footage from the classroom and said it showed Jones placing Antonio in a headlock and moving him to a bathroom attached to the classroom. The bathroom is not surveilled, and the two were there for more than two minutes, Lyles said. She said the experience was traumatizing for Antonio, and describing it still brings her to tears.
“It feels like a betrayal to me,” Lyles said.
Chennault also said the district must account for the time between Antonio being mistreated and notifying Lyles.
The district did not comment on the claims, but stated: “Rockdale County Public Schools expects all employees to conduct themselves professionally and ethically in providing a positive teaching and learning environment for students and staff. We support our law enforcement partners who investigate these matters and bring charges to anyone who allegedly harms a child.”
Jones is not the only former district employee facing charges for actions in the classroom.
Former special education teacher Janice Foot, 58, of Lithonia, was arrested Dec. 12 and charged with two counts of cruelty to children after an alleged victim’s parents reported her to Conyers police. The district said Foot was fired from her position at C.J. Hicks Elementary School the same day the parents reported her.
Conyers police spokesman Lt. Quantavis Garcia said detectives reviewed video and audio from the classroom and believe Foot was attempting to punish two 5-year-olds by forcibly holding their heads against their desks, preventing them from watching a video with the rest of the class. Garcia did not say how long the children’s heads were allegedly held down, but police did note scratch marks and bruising on their heads. Police did not say when the alleged incidents took place.
Foot was later released on bond.
A spokeswoman for the Rockdale school system said she could not comment on the matter due to personnel and student privacy laws. Foot had worked for the system for a little more than five years.
Chennault said other families with special needs students have come forward with concerns about their children’s treatment.
“Rockdale has created a system and a culture in which adults think it’s OK to abuse innocent children,” Chennault said.
Lyles plans to enroll Antonio in a private school and believes the district should cover the cost.
About the Authors
Keep Reading
The Latest
Featured
