Parent and volunteers tell Edmonds board a teacher groomed a child; callers urge district to notify families

Jenny Berry, who identified herself as a district employee and a mandated reporter, told the Edmonds School District board that a six-year-old student at Meadowdale Elementary was “being groomed by an adult learning support teacher.” She said she reported the conduct to the principal and the district’s human resources director but that, in her account, neither official reported the matter to Child Protective Services, the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction or the police.

“That little girl was being groomed by an adult learning support teacher,” Berry said. “Not one of those men reported the behavior to CPS, OSPI, or the police.” She said the teacher had been previously reported in 2022 to the director of special education, was given a letter of directives instructing him not to ask for hugs, but that the behavior continued and the teacher was later rehired.

Wendy Masterson, a long-time volunteer who said she spent many years in the district and whose comments were introduced during the public comment period, described classroom conditions she found disturbing — classroom doors and windows covered, low cubbies and reduced sight lines — and urged the board to contact parents who might have children affected by the behavior dating to 2022. “There’s a lot of this that is not okay,” Masterson said, adding she had tried to reach some parents through Facebook and acquaintances and found they were not aware.

Board Chair Katims reminded commenters of the district’s civility rules and said public commenters should not identify staff or students by name. As the presenters’ three minutes closed, Superintendent Dr. Minor interjected the time limit and the board did not record a substantive on-the-record response to the allegations during the meeting.

What happened next: The allegation and requests to contact potentially affected families were made during the public comment period; the record in this meeting does not show the board directing staff to notify families, open an investigation on the public record, or report these statements to outside authorities. The board moved on to agenda items after the allotted comment periods ended.

Why it matters: Public commenters alleged that behavior described as grooming was reported internally and was not, according to those commenters, reported to external authorities. That raises questions about the district’s response pathways for suspected abuse, mandated reporting procedures and communication to families. The board did not take a recorded formal action in this meeting to address those allegations.

Board, district and next steps: The transcript of this meeting records the allegations and pleas for district outreach but does not record a district investigation, charge, or public statement by the superintendent about whether outside authorities were notified. The comments could prompt follow-up by board members, the superintendent’s office or by third parties; the meeting record contains no such directive.

Provenance: topicintro: SEG 398 (Jenny Berry self-identifies and begins comments); topfinish: SEG 517 (end of Wendy Masterson’s comments).