Anna ISD confirmed with WFAA, the teacher is no longer an employee.
ANNA, Texas — A former Anna ISD teacher has been charged after allegedly hurting a kindergarten student at Hendricks Elementary School, according to the district and the student’s family.
The child’s mother, Danielle Broomfield, told WFAA the incident happened on Wednesday, Oct. 8. She alleges her 5-year-old daughter was grabbed and picked up by one arm by her teacher, Mikaela Priest, and placed in a chair.
“The problem is that the teacher grabbed her so hard that there were finger marks on my daughter’s arm that took five days to fade,” Broomfield said.
Broomfield said another teacher noticed the marks during recess and asked her daughter what happened.
“My daughter said, ‘My teacher did it.’ The other teacher then took her to the office to report the incident,” she said.
Anna ISD said Priest was immediately removed from the classroom and placed on administrative leave after the district was notified.
As of Friday, Oct. 10, the teacher is no longer employed by Anna ISD. The district stated that it’s aware that the former employee was arrested over the weekend and will continue to cooperate with law enforcement fully.
Priest was arrested and released from the Collin County Jail on Saturday, Oct. 11. Broomfield said she is thankful for how quickly officials acted.
“The school principal, school resource officer, and Collin County investigator have all worked thoroughly and swiftly to make an arrest,” she said. “Now we wait for a trial. In the end, we just want this person to never be around kids again.”
Anna ISD and law enforcement officials said their investigations are ongoing.