Substitute teacher in Texas fired for abortion ‘joke’

KYLE, Texas (KXAN) – A substitute teacher at Lehman High School in Kyle was fired for what the district is calling an unacceptable “lack of judgment.”

On Friday, Feb. 19, a student said she was in seventh period when she found a balloon in a cupboard. She says she blew it up and then pretended to be pregnant by putting it under her shirt. That is when she says the male substitute teacher got involved.

“The substitute came after me with a large pair of scissors and was yelling at me saying ‘time for an abortion,’” a junior at Lehman High School says. “I was shocked, I was terrified and could not say anything. I felt like I couldn’t breathe for a minute.”

She later contacted her mother who was breathless herself. Mom says all she could do was call administrators.

“Look, I’m coming up there with the police, I want answers,” the student’s mother said.

She says she was irate that something like that could happen in a learning environment.

“When she called me upset, I was terrified I panicked,” mom says. “My kid goes to school think it’s safe and then you get a call saying a teacher is coming after you with scissors saying it’s time for an abortion.”

The district says this type of behavior is against their protocol. “Whether or not the gesture was intended as a joke is not relevant. The action shows a lack of judgment that is not acceptable in Hays CISD,” says district spokesperson Tim Savoy.

The Hays Consolidated Independent School District has not verified whether the teacher stood and held the scissors or rushed towards the student. Hays CISD does verify the student was playing with the balloon and the substitute teacher made those comments while holding scissors.

The Hays County Sheriff’s Office opened an investigation on Friday but on Tuesday they released this statement: “We are closing the case with no criminal charges and referring it back to the school to be addressed.”