A 3-year-old HISD Head Start student was left behind by his class while on a field trip to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, the district confirms.
Kelsey Williams says her son, Karter, is in the Head Start program at Thompson Elementary. Last Friday while on a field trip to the rodeo, he was separated from his class and left behind by his teacher, the mother said.
“What if he felt like, ‘I’m not going to see my mom. My teacher’s left me. My friends left me,'” Williams said as she wiped away tears. “Was he crying?”
Thankfully, a rodeo visitor found the little boy and connected him with another class from the school. He rode back with them. Williams only learned of the incident on Monday.
“Why did you not report it? Someone else found him, a man. I don’t know the man’s name,” she said. “I don’t know what the man looks like. I’m thankful for him, but I don’t know who that man is.”
She called the teacher’s actions “careless” and “irresponsible” and said Karter should have never been on that field trip in the first place. Williams says a teacher’s aide signed the permission slip.
The school principal, not Karter’s teacher, was the one who notified Williams of the mishap. Tuesday, she met with a HISD parent liaison. She thinks the incident should cost the teacher her job.
The district’s statement did not answer questions about teacher discipline.
HISD Media Statement:
“HISD is aware of an incident involving a Thompson Elementary School student who was inadvertently separated from his class while on a field trip to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo last Friday. The student was located within minutes by an event attendee who quickly reunited the student with another class from his school. The student was safely transported back to the campus with that class.The district works diligently to ensure the well-being of every child entrusted to our care, as the safety of our students is always our top priority.”
