HUMBLE, Texas â A special education teacher has resigned from Humble Independent School District after being accused of giving melatonin gummies to a few of her students at Pine Forest Elementary School.
District officials said an investigation was launched after it received information about the teacherâs action in late September.
During the investigation, the district learned that the teacher âdid give out melatonin gummies, acting on her own and without obtaining parental permission.â
The district said the teacher did not notify the campus administration or a nurse about her actions.
âIs she bringing the melatonin from home,â asked Nia Moreno, whose son was given the melatonin gummies. âWe donât know what was in there besides the melatonin.â
Moreno said she had more questions than answers after she was told about the incident.
She recalls picking up her 5-year-old early from school this semester when a paraprofessional said they woke him up from a nap.
âOne of the paraprofessionals was like, âoh heâs kind of grumpy because he actually fell asleep, but we had to wake him up because you were here.â I was like âoh okay,ââ Moreno recalls. But now learning about melatonin she sees it differently.
âFor me, that one occasion was the only sign that Iâve gotten. They never said he took a nap or anything else like that,â she said. âHonestly, I donât know how many times he was given it, it could have been multiple times.â
The teacher was reported to the State Board for Educator Certification, Child Protective Services and the police by the district. Itâs unclear what, if any, charges she will face.
The Pine Forest Elementary School principal called the parents of all students in the teacherâs class and said all students were doing well.
The district said the teacher has not been in the classroom since late September when the incident was reported.
HUMBLE ISD STATEMENT
âHumble ISD reported all information to Child Protective Services, TEA, and Humble ISD Police. They are investigating and we cannot provide further information, at this time, during open investigations.â