TIFTON, Ga. (WALB) - A special education teacher from Eighth Street Middle School in Tifton has been arrested after allegedly assaulting students.

The Tifton Police Department received a call from the Tift County School Board on May 9 regarding a complaint they received alleging a teacher had assaulted students at Eighth Street Middle School.

After receiving the call, police began investigating.

On Wednesday, May 14, the Tifton Police Department took Dixie Hardy, 55, into custody after she turned herself in.

Hardy was arrested for the following charges:

• 1 Count Cruelty to Children in the 1st Degree
• 1 Count Simple Battery

She is currently being held at the Tift County Sheriff’s Office awaiting arraignment.

Lakishia Shepherd and Demich Gary each have nonverbal students attending Eighth Street Middle School. While neither the school nor police have described the alleged assaults, the two parents said they were notified separately that something had happened involving their children and Hardy.

“It was stated that the teacher was pulling and yanking on my child from the mat. I watched the video a couple days later, it was nothing as it was explained to me. It was pretty much far worse,” parent Lakishia Shepherd said.

The other parent, Demich Gary, seemed to agree with Shepherd.

“There are other ways to communicate with a child to let them know what you want them to do,” Gary added. “Pulling on her is not the answer. Dragging her is not the answer, and grabbing her face is definitely not the answer. I don’t grab her face as a mom.”

The school district released the following statement in response to the situation:

On Friday, May 9, the administration at Eighth Street Middle School was made aware of an incident involving the inappropriate treatment of two students by a staff member. In accordance with district protocol, the school immediately requested support from the district office, and an investigation by the Human Resources team was initiated.

Whenever a staff member is accused of the inappropriate treatment of a child, as mandated reporters, it is standard district procedure to notify both the Department of Family and Children Services (DFCS) and local law enforcement to allow for a thorough and independent investigation. Accordingly, Tift County Schools made a formal report to DFCS and submitted an official request for law enforcement involvement. Additionally, the families of all students in the class were personally contacted to inform them of the situation.

In line with established procedure, the staff member involved was placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the personnel investigation. The Human Resources team is conducting a careful and comprehensive review of the circumstances and, when appropriate, will take necessary employment actions. The district also evaluates whether the allegations may constitute a violation of educator ethics. If so, a report is submitted to the Georgia Professional Standards Commission (PSC) for their review and potential action.

At this time, both personnel and criminal investigations are ongoing. As such, we are limited in the amount of information we are able to share.

Tift County Schools is committed to the safety and well-being of all students. Any accusation of student mistreatment is taken seriously and will be investigated thoroughly and addressed appropriately.

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