AUBURNDALE, FL (970 WFLA) -- A central Florida teacher has gotten a warning after making jokes to her middle school class about school shooters. One of those jokes came the day after the Parkland school shooting a couple of hundred miles away.
Rainbow Wade is the parent of a seventh grader who attends Stambaugh Middle School. She says her son was agitated when he told her what his teacher said in class during a lockdown drill several weeks ago.
"They're in the drill, several of the students in class were talking, and the teacher said if there were an actual shooting, there were some of the kids she'd lock out in the hallway to keep the rest... safe," Wade said.
Wade said several students complained but she never got a follow-up from school officials after the first incident. Then, the day after the Parkland attack, she says her son told her the teacher joked that students shouldn't run from a gunman, "because you'll end up dead," followed by laughter.
Wade demanded a meeting with Stambaugh's new principal, and says she was assured the teacher had been told in no uncertain terms that her actions were unacceptable and would not be tolerated anymore.
The Polk County school district said in a statement that there were "conflicting accounts" about what happened, but administrators have "reiterated" the need to be careful when talking about safety. Here's the full statement from senior communications director Rachel Pleasant.
“We have spoken to the parent, teacher, and student. We have conflicting accounts about what exactly was said during a lockdown drill several weeks ago. Regardless, we have reiterated to the teacher the need to be sensitive when talking about any matter related to school safety. Per the parent’s request, we have transferred the student to a different class. We apologize for any misunderstanding or offense the comment caused.”
Wade says she's satisfied with the school's response.
Neither Wade nor the school district gave the teacher's name.