Conway student family member: Incident involving Jordan warrants further action

She thought that maybe viewing a tape of the incident would finally put her mind and heart at ease.

But for a family member of the Conway High student alleged to have been involved in an incident with a substitute teacher and longtime football coach Chuck Jordan, a meeting Tuesday with school officials left her with more questions than answers.

“I was at the school from 8:15 a.m. to 10:30 a.m., hoping to see what happened on Friday and what they are doing to find out what happened,” the family member told The Sun News, their name omitted in an effort not to reveal the identity of the student alleged to have been involved. “I watched what was on the tape, heard what they were saying in the meeting and it still doesn’t make sense to me.”

Jordan has been placed on administrative leave with pay while the investigation is ongoing, according to Horry County Schools public information officer Teal Britton. The substitute teacher also has been temporarily removed from a district list of substitute teachers, Britton said.

Currently, HCS officials are mum on details in regard to what did or did not occur.

“What we know is there was an incident at the school involving (Jordan), a substitute teacher and a student,” Britton said. “Right now we cannot say exactly what caused the incident, as that is something we are hoping an investigation will help us with.”

School district officials are utilizing witness statements and surveillance footage to aid in the investigation.

Among those who have viewed a tape of the incident was a family member of the student involved. From what she claims to have seen, Jordan made physical contact with the student and there is more than enough to proceed with a case.

“From what I saw on tape, (the Conway High student) was walking down the hallway, stopped, and then all of a sudden was grabbed and slammed, then they went around a corner,” she said. “I was so mad, I couldn’t finish watching. If it was the other way around, the child would have been in handcuffs and headed to jail.”

According to the local woman, the Conway High student purportedly involved is diagnosed with bipolar disorder and ADHD, regularly receiving treatment to regulate certain behaviors.

“This is a special ed child,” she said. “There are programs in place with people certified to handle him. They know how he acts, they know what he needs. Whatever happened, they would have been able to handle it.”

The sequence of events leading up to the incident in question remains rather murky, according to both the Conway High student’s family and the school district. In the days following, rumors and speculation as to what occurred has become a popular subject among those in the community.

“I still do not have an answer as to what started this incident. (Horry County Schools) said it will take a couple more days to get this together,” the family member said. “But many saw what happened, and did nothing.”

Attempts to reach Jordan were unsuccessful, while calls to officials at Conway High School were not returned.

No incident report was on file as of Wednesday afternoon with the Conway Police Department.

“Currently the department is gathering information to determine what occurred. We are working with Horry County School District and Conway High as part of the investigation, which is still ongoing at this time,” said Lt. Selena Small of the Conway Police Department in a prepared statement Wednesday.

Though working together in an effort to discover what occurred, should the CPD begin its own investigation, it will be separate from one conducted by the school district, Britton said.

In 34 years at the helm, Jordan has led Conway to 278 wins — eighth-most in state high school football history. Until 2014, he also held the title of the school’s athletic director.

This story was originally published May 31, 2017 at 3:46 PM with the headline "Conway student family member: Incident involving Jordan warrants further action."