BRAZORIA COUNTY, Texas – An Alvin ISD parent with a five-year-old daughter at Red Duke Elementary School has pulled her daughter from school after she said she was assaulted in the school bathroom by classmates on two separate occasions.
“The first one, it was very shocking, because I would never have guessed anything like that to happen especially when you’re expecting your child to be safe when you drop them off at school,” the mom said. “You don’t expect your child to be like, ‘hey, something happened to me at school.’”
KPRC 2 is not naming the mother to prevent identifying her daughter.
The report says that on February 6, as the girl went into a bathroom at Red Duke Elementary School in Manvel, a boy student followed her inside. Once in the bathroom, the report says he “crawled under the restroom stall and used a pair of scissors to stab” the child’s vaginal area.
The report states the boy was not allowed to return to school.
The mom told KPRC 2′s Rilwan Balogun the boy in the February incident was expelled.
The 5-year-old girl’s parent shared an email exchange with the Red Duke Principal, Emily Hall, Alvin ISD Superintendent Carol Nelson, and Lakeisha Holloway, the district director of student and administrative services. In the email, dated February 26, Hall shared changes the district implemented following the alleged assault.
“We did make some adjustments to our schedules to ensure we have ample staff members on duty to support our smallest learners here on campus,” the email reads.
The email linked to a Google Document sharing Pre-Kindergarten Recess and Lunch guidelines such as when students should use restrooms “to limit the number of students using restrooms during lunch.”
“In your opinion, did it work?” Balogun asked the woman during a Thursday, May 2 interview.
“No, because my daughter still got hurt, again,” she said. “Now this is just another re-traumatizing event. After the first one, we were still working with her, because she was afraid to use the bathroom.”
The mother said two months after the February incident, it happened again with another boy.
“It’s been hard, very hard,” she said. “It’s like, you guys put protocols and procedures in place after the first incident but now those have failed so now at this point, what are we going to do?”
Balogun reached out to Alvin ISD communications officials Thursday morning before interviewing the parent. He asked for comment by 3 p.m. The district missed the deadline. Balogun sent another email at 3:30 seeking a comment. Then called the communications director and a specialist at 4:45. Both calls went to voicemail.
Monday, May 6, the district responded with the information they sent out to parents:
Dear Duke Elementary Parents,
We are writing this letter to address a recent story that has gained attention in the media concerning an incident occurring within our school. We understand that such news can be concerning, and we want to assure you that we are taking this matter very seriously.
We are unable to provide specific details regarding the incident; however, we feel it is important to inform you that while there have been inconsistencies in the story, there is an ongoing investigation being conducted by both Child Protective Services and the Alvin ISD Police Department.
As always, the safety and well-being of our students remain our utmost priority. We are cooperating fully with the authorities involved in the investigation to ensure a thorough and transparent process. Rest assured, we are committed to providing a safe and nurturing environment for all our students and staff.
Thank you for your continued support and trust in Duke Elementary. Together, we will ensure the safety and well-being of our school community.
Sincerely,
Emily Hall
Principal, Duke Elementary School
A Texas Department of Family and Protective Services spokesperson confirmed they are investigating the second incident.
The mother said she and her five-year-old spoke with DFPS investigators.
“I want the parents to know,” the mother said. “Speak to your kids. Ask them what’s going on at school, ‘hey, does anybody mess with you in the bathroom? Does anybody follow you to the bathroom?’ Because at this point that’s what the issue is, people are being followed in the bathroom and nobody is watching them.”