Pettit claims no spanking or taping incidents at Denman have happened since November investigation

QUINCY — Quincy Superintendent Todd Pettit said in a prepared statement on Friday that investigations by Quincy Public Schools (QPS) and the Department of Child and Family Services (DCFS) found no “credible evidence” to show that the conduct of two Denman Elementary School physical education teachers — deemed “wildly inappropriate” by DCFS — ever continued after a district response and implementation of corrective action in November.

Pettit’s letter comes two days after the parent of a Denman student told the Quincy School Board that her 6-year-old daughter’s mouth recently had been taped shut during P.E. class by school staff.

Muddy River News contacted on Friday other parents who previously claimed their children had experienced spankings and tapings. Those parents declined to speak publicly on Friday, saying they are planning on making a statement soon.

Muddy River News tried to reach Pettit to ask questions about his letter. However, an automated response to an email sent Friday to Pettit’s email account with the school district said he is “out of the office on vacation” and will return to work on July 7.

A letter signed by Pettit on behalf of the seven members of the Quincy School Board was emailed by Communications Officer Anna Oakley to parents, teachers and the media late Friday afternoon.

A DCFS investigation, conducted in November after a request from a parent, revealed that Denman teachers Kim Kirby and Jennifer Oitker frequently put tape over students’ mouths for talking and gave “birthday spankings” that led to students being afraid to let friends and teachers at school know it was their birthday. The DCFS report called the teachers’ actions “wildly inappropriate, but not criminal” since there were no sexual connotations.

“(There was) insufficient evidence to support there has been any incidents of substantial risk of physical injury (unnamed student) or any of the unknown child victims regarding the alleged physical abuse,” the DCFS report said. “(Unnamed student) reported the incidents did not hurt and that he just did not like the incidents as it made him uncomfortable. While these incidents do appear to be inappropriate in nature, they do not meet the definition of substantial risk of child abuse.”

The DCFS report listed the Novbember allegation finding as “unfounded.”

“The QPS administration made it clear to all involved that this type of behavior, including distributing tape, students placing tape on their own mouths, or birthday spankings, even if purported to be playful or fun, is not acceptable in any school setting,” Pettit wrote. “Administration implemented corrective action consistent with the provisions of Illinois law on Nov. 15.”

Pettit said action taken in the wake of the incidents at Denman has not been made public because it is a personnel matter, but he said all personnel cooperated fully in the internal investigation and DCFS investigation.

“It is important to emphasize: a finding of ‘unfounded’ by DCFS does not mean that QPS condoned or approved of the conduct. We did not,” Pettit said.

Pettit said in his letter that the behaviors of the Denman have not continued after November, explaining the district has received additional concerns from parents since that time. He said 36 students and parents have been interviewed, numerous hours of security footage have been reviewed, and 21 staff members have said in interviews they have not witnessed or participated in further incidents involving tape or spankings since November.

“We have taken each report seriously,” he said. “Our follow-up investigations have been thorough and transparent.”

However, Brooke Wells told the Quincy School Board at its Wednesday, June 25 meeting that her 6-year-old daughter told her “through tears” last month that “she had her mouth taped shut during P.E. class by school staff” around Easter time.

“(My daughter) told me that one adult held her arm while another placed tape over her mouth. That is physical restraint,” Wells said. “This was not a game. This was not a misunderstanding. … My daughter clearly told me what happened. She named the adults involved. She did not make this up, and she did not do this to herself.

“She said they made it fun. That’s not fun. That’s grooming. That’s a tactic to confuse a child into staying silent, and it worked. (My daughter) didn’t tell anyone at the time because she thought she wasn’t allowed to.”

Pettit said all complaints brought to QPS have been investigated as of June 25. He also said DCFS conducted a second investigation in April. Claims were determined to be unfounded due to either a lack of evidence or missing details such as specific dates, times or people in the complaining report.

Pettit also addressed “harmful and inaccurate comments circulating on social media” targeting Denman staff and educators across the district.

“These claims are not supported by any evidence and are deeply damaging to the dedicated professionals who work tirelessly for our students,” he wrote. “We stand firmly behind our staff and reject baseless accusations that harm their reputation and integrity.”

Muddy River News attempted to learn the employment status of Kirby and Oitker for the upcoming school year, but Oakley said in her email that the district would not be granting any further interviews on the subject.

Laura Shaw, a parent of children in Quincy Public Schools, told the Quincy School Board at its Wednesday meeting that minimizing the concerns of students and parents regarding the situation could prevent children from coming forward about other potential instances of “inappropriate” touching or abuse in the future. She called the two teachers “a liability to QPS for their lack of common sense and poor ethics.”