Schools

Branford Teacher Allegedly Displayed Knife to Students

BHS history teacher suspended after displaying knife to students.

On Friday, Jan. 13, sent a release to parents of high school students regarding a teacher who allegedly displayed a knife in her classroom. It its believed that the teacher is female and instructs history at the school.

No one was hurt during the incident. said they were not contacted regarding the incident. There have been no charges filed against the teacher by police at this time. The teacher, according to Hernandez, has since been placed on administrative leave. It is believed that only one class of students was affected by the incident.

Superintendent Hamlet Hernandez, Jan. 13 letter to parents:

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Today [Jan. 13, 2012] my administration learned of an incident alleging inappropriate and possibly dangerous conduct by a teacher at . While we have not concluded our investigation, preliminary information is that the teacher displayed a knife in class. It appears that the teacher’s conduct was intended as a joke. Nonetheless, [BHS Principal,] Mr. Panagoulias and his staff took immediate steps to place the teacher on administrative leave pending the results of the investigation initiated by the school district.

Given the seriousness of the incident, the administration is taking steps to mitigate the disruption to the educational process. We have been in contact with the parents of the affected students, and a substitute teacher will be assigned starting on Monday. The safety of our students is paramount; and to that end, we continue to work with the appropriate authorities to investigate this incident in a timely manner and take appropriate action as may be warranted when our investigation is complete.

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If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to call Mr. Panagoulias at 203-488-7291.


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