2nd grader was “instructed to send picture doing reading homework in bathtub,” parents say

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A second-grade student was removed from the classroom after her parents questioned a homework assignment.

Students at Victory Christian Academy were asked to “send a picture of you doing reading homework in the bathtub.”

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“A bathtub is not appropriate for a child to take a picture,” Misty Dunham said.

Misty and her husband, Christopher, were shocked to see this written on their 8-year-old’s homework assignment.

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“I emailed the teacher ‘Hey, you may want to explain that. Send something out to the parents. Let them know what the intentions are.’ This just does not sound OK,” Misty Dunham said. “She did send out a message saying, ‘you should be in pajamas, be in your uniform, have fun with it.’ But, it didn’t sit right.”

Misty Dunham reached out to the school administration, and later to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, to document the incident.

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In a police report obtained by Action News Jax, it states parents were told by administrators, “we have been sending this homework assignment for years, and you’re the only one complaining about it.” Police advised the parents not to take the photo.

Later, the Dunham family said they got a call from the school.

“(He said) ‘I think you guys should do a parental withdrawal for the child.’ I said, ‘I can’t. I can’t do that. We refuse to withdraw her,’” Misty Dunham said. “He said, ‘OK thank you for saying that,’ and continued on saying that, ‘Well, we’re going to proceed with an administration withdraw.’”

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Documentation from the school indicates their daughter is no longer a student at Victory Christian Academy.

“No explanation,” Misty Dunham said.

The family believes this sends the wrong message.

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“She did something right by telling mom and dad that she wasn’t comfortable with something, and now she’s no longer in school,” Christopher Dunham said.

The President of Victory Christian Academy, Pastor Jesse Latta, sent us this statement regarding the assignment:

“There was an assignment given, as I understand you have received a copy. It was taken out of an online teacher resource and has been used in many schools. There were certainly no bad intentions with this assignment. When a parent contacted our teacher with a complaint, our teacher immediately sent out correspondence to all parents in the class to assure them that there were no bad intentions with this assignment and to clarify the guidelines. No additional concerns were presented to the teacher. While the assignment was completely innocent, out of an abundance of caution and for there to be no misunderstandings, our administration has removed this particular assignment for any future use. We value our children and their safety is our top priority. We will continue to serve the children and families in which the Lord has graciously allowed us to have a part in their lives.”

—  Pastor Jesse Latta

We asked about the status of the student and why there was an “administrative withdraw” from the school for this student. We have not heard back.

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