Abuse allegations against Horry Schools teacher came from witnesses. Where is the footage?
Recent charges against an Horry County Schools special education teacher and principal have stirred up old wounds for local advocates and parents of students with disabilities.
Grace McColgan is facing six counts of unlawful conduct toward children after allegedly hitting some of her students, leaving one in an unlit bathroom and rubbing hand sanitizer in a student’s open wound, according to the arrest warrants. She’s been on administrative leave since Oct. 11.
These accusations stem from witness statements, the warrants show, while notably absent from these reports is any mention of law enforcement reviewing video footage that could either reinforce or dispute these accounts.
The Sun News reached out to the attorneys for the teacher and the principal.
That’s because, while security cameras are present in school buses and throughout many common areas in school buildings, they are not in special education classrooms, HCS spokeswoman Lisa Bourcier confirmed.
That’s a problem that parents and advocates have fought to cure many years ago, according to Sarah Pope, CEO of SOS Care, a local nonprofit serving children and adults with autism and intellectual disabilities.
“If we had the cameras (in classrooms), then we would know for sure (what happened),” Pope said. “I’m not sure why this was such a contentious issue, ... but for the most vulnerable students, we need cameras in the classroom.”
The issue was first raised in 2011 when the mother of a high school student with autism was notified that an aide working with her daughter was facing abuse allegations, according to Sun News archives, and more parents joined the cause after a pair of Forestbrook Elementary School aides were arrested in 2013.
Those unlawful neglect charges came after the mother of a 5-year-old student with special needs sent her child to school wearing a hidden digital recorder, which police said captured the aides telling the child he was bad and sending him to a small bathroom and shutting the door.
One of the aides was also heard on the recording remarking about “it being a good thing there are not cameras in the room yet,” according to previous Sun News reporting.
Efforts to gets cameras installed
An online petition calling on HCS to add security cameras to special education classrooms that circulated after the arrests garnered nearly 500 signatures. Texas passed in a bill in 2015 requiring cameras in special education classrooms.
But HCS officials at the time expressed concerns about costs and privacy, according to Sun News archives.
Pope recalled district officials mentioning confidentiality as a reason not to install the cameras, but she countered she’s sure most parents would sign waivers if needed to ensure a greater feeling of safety.
These new allegations of abuse by the Ocean Bay Elementary special education teacher is a “nightmare” for parents of children with disabilities, Pope said, particularly children who are nonverbal. Several of the alleged victims were nonverbal, according to details revealed at McColgan’s bond hearing Wednesday.
“That’s the worst thing about having a kid that’s nonverbal (is them not being able to tell you what happened to them when you’re not around),” she said. “You watch for behaviors, see if they’re acting differently, but can’t find out why. It’s traumatizing knowing you kept sending them back.”
Ken Richardson, the district’s outgoing school board chairman, wasn’t aware special education classrooms didn’t have security cameras, he said. He added that it “might not be a bad idea” to consider in light of this incident.
“It could be good for everybody’s protection, the students and staff,” he said. “We could just watch the tape and know (for sure what happened).”
David Cox, who is running unopposed to replace Richardson as chairman, told The Sun News he wanted to do some more research about the issue before responding and didn’t respond further prior to publication.
