BOSTON (WHDH) - All students returned to class at a Dorchester school days after one student allegedly knocked the principal unconscious.
Students in grades two through six went back to Dr. William W. Henderson Inclusion School Upper Campus on Monday, while students in grades seventh through 12 made their return Tuesday.
Classes had been canceled last Thursday and Friday after the Suffolk District Attorney’s Office says a 16-year-old student punched Principal Patricia Lampron repeatedly in the head during dismissal last Wednesday, knocking Lampron unconscious for several minutes.
Lampron was transported to Brigham and Women’s Hospital for treatment of her injuries but is currently back home recovering.
Boston Public Schools Superintendent Brenda Cassellius wrote in a letter to families on Friday that Lampron “is taking the time she needs to heal and recuperate and she is grateful to the whole community for pulling together for our students.”
The student is also accused of assaulting another staff member.
She appeared in Dorchester Juvenile Court on Thursday to face charges of assault and battery on a person over age 60 or disabled resulting in serious bodily injury, assault and battery causing serious bodily injury, and assault and battery on a public employee.
People gathered outside the school Sunday to write positive messages in chalk on the sidewalk as a way to welcome students back.
Newly elected Boston City Councilor Erin Murphy, who is a former Henderson teacher, says that she does not want the alleged assault to define the school.
“I know that from teaching here that it’s a wonderful school and a wonderful community so it’s great that everyone is coming together,” she said.
New protocols are being implemented on campus, including additional staff greeting and escorting kids during arrival and dismissal, Boston police officers being visible and present during school hours, and more training for staff in crisis prevention and CPR.
(Copyright (c) 2022 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)