BARNSTABLE, MASS. (WHDH) - A Cape Cod teacher has been placed on leave after he “physically intervened” during an incident involving students on Thursday morning, officials said.
The alleged incident happened in a classroom at Barnstable High School around 8:15 a.m., according to Superintendent of Schools Meg Mayo-Brown.
“A Barnstable High School teacher inappropriately physically intervened in a matter between two students,” Mayo-Brown said in a statement. “The teacher exhibited actions contrary to the values and expectations of Barnstable Public Schools, and has been placed on administrative leave.”
Shocking video of the altercation has been shared on social media and shows the teacher throwing the student headfirst into a filing cabinet. The student can be heard crying out in pain.
“The teacher caught up with him and he grabbed him viciously and like, pulled him over and he went flying into the filing cabinet,” said Caleb Jones, who witnessed the incident first hand.
Jones said two of his friends were fooling around with rulers during art class.
“They were fooling around until one hit the other too hard and then it got into something else,” he said.
He said the fight escalated dramatically when the teacher stepped in.
“The teacher really just ran after and tried to stop the situation but it didn’t lead that way,” Jones explained.
Jones said his friend was left on the floor in pain.
“He was just sitting there. He just let him sit there,” he said. “He got up and he was really hurt. He was crying at his desk for a good 10 minutes until we decided to walk him out.”
It was the student’s friends who eventually escorted him to the nurse.
“The teacher was just walking around like it was fine,” Jones said.
Mayo-Brown noted that the incident is under investigation and that appropriate action will be taken based on the school district’s findings.
“We want our BHS community to know that we take this matter very seriously, and that the health and safety of our students remains our first and foremost priority,” Mayo-Brown said.
Barnstable police are assisting with the investigation.
“I think this was terrible. It was not right at all,” Jones said. “I don’t like to see teachers do that to my friends.”
The name of the teacher has not been made public.
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