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A substitute teacher has been fired for smoking marijuana in front of high school students in a classroom in Massachusetts, United States last Monday, Dec. 16.
A group of students inside the classroom immediately reported the teacher (unnamed in the report) to school officials after the incident, as per ABC-affiliate WLNE the next day, Dec. 17.
“During the course of the school day several students reported that a substitute teacher had been leading conversations in a classroom about smoking marijuana and was observed using marijuana in front of students in the same classroom,” Peter Haviland, principal of North Attleboro High School, was quoted as saying.
The said teacher has also been banned from entering the school’s campus for “any event or reason.”
Haviland confirmed that the teacher smoked marijuana in front of the minors, and immediately fired the teacher. As per report, he sent a letter out to parents of the students to notify them of what happened.
Haviland also praised the students who notified school authorities of the teacher’s actions.
“When they saw something, they reported it,” he said in the report. “They saw it was wrong and had the courage to report on it.”
Meanwhile, one Brett Labonte, a student at the school, said he was “just in disbelief” when he found out about the incident.
“I couldn’t believe that a teacher would even bring that in school, never mind uses it in front of kids,” he told the news outlet. “That’s just setting a bad example.”
After the incident, the school also offered counseling services “to support any student who may have ongoing concerns.”
The case is still under investigation, as per WHDH on the same day. Ryan Arcadio/JB
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