An Ohio math teacher is at risk of being fired after she allegedly duct taped her students' mouths and then posted a photo of the incident on her Facebook page. According to United Press International, Melissa Cairns of Buchtel Community Learning Center has until Saturday to respond to the allegations.
Akron Public Schools Board of Education, which oversees Buchtel Community Learning Center, voted on January 14 to pursue termination of Cairns and is expected to vote on her firing on January 28, UPI reported. The Akron Beacon Journal reported that the teachers' union intends to request a referee for the case.
According to the school district spokeswoman Sarah Hollander, Cairns has been on paid leave since October 19. Cairns, who joined the school district in 2007, had worked at two previous schools within the district before joining Buchtel in August, UPI reported. The Beacon Journal wrote that Cairns taught math at Garfield for three years and at Firestone for two years.
Hollander said that the photo in question shows eight or nine of Cairns' 16 students duct taped in the mouth with a caption that read, "Finally found a way to get them to be quiet!!!" The spokeswoman told the Beacon Journal that the photos was likely taken in September or October before one of her colleague's noticed it and reported it to a supervisor.
The Beacon Journal reported that Buchtel Principal Sonya Gordon then notified parents and asked Cairns to remove the photograph.
Attempts to reach Cairns for comment were not answered, the newspaper reported.