A teacher from Oklahoma apparently saw it as a good idea to stuff eleven children in one Honda Accord, taking them for a run to the candy store. The children were aged between 12 and 15, and according to reports, two of them had to ride in the trunk of the car as there was no room in the vehicle itself. The teacher reportedly took the students to the nearby Walmart, driving for about a mile, and then returned with them to the school after buying their items.
The reason for the disciplinary action seems to be tied to students’ safety – according to the official statement issued by the school’s superintendent, this kind of act is unacceptable, as it puts all students at severe risk. It’s not clear if the school would have had a problem if the same trip was taken with fewer students in the car. Some reports indicate that the problem isn’t just the way the kids were being transported, but also the fact that they were taken outside the school in such a manner in the first place.
The school apparently has a system in place where parents must give their explicit permission for students to be taken off the premises, something which the teacher violated. The seating capacity of the Honda Accord is officially given as 5 by Honda themselves, so the fact that she loaded the car with more than twice that number of passengers certainly doesn’t help her case at all.
The teacher expressed strong remorse for her actions, stating that she never intended to hurt anyone, nor was she thinking that she’s disregarding the children’s safety. Her only motivation was to do something nice for the kids, and from what’s been shared by people close to the incident, the children themselves were quite excited to go on the candy run – and subsequently very disappointed at the dismissal of their teacher.
It’s not clear if the decision to let her go is final, although it certainly seems like it at the moment – despite the fact that the teacher reportedly has over ten years of experience in her position, she will likely have to look for another job. The timing for such an incident could certainly not be worse, all things considered, and families from the area have expressed hope that she’ll be able to get back on her feet quickly. Others have been more critical of her actions, claiming that her long experience is exactly the reason why she should have known better, and should have considered her actions more strongly before taking the students on the trip, especially when she should have been familiar with the school’s rules.