JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Action News Jax has learned the name of the school where a local substitute teacher was working in when she allegedly hurt a student and encouraged other students to “beat him up”.
Geanene white, was subbing at Tiger Academy YMCA on the northside.
She’s been arrested and charged with child abuse.
>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<
According to the arrest report, Geanene White was subbing on Feb. 12th and asked a student to get into a small group. Allegedly, that student refused and her frustration grew.
The report said she then asked the class “Who in here can beat him up?” and four kids raised their hands. White allegedly called them out one by one to fight the victim as she watched.
In the report, it said the kids hit the victim multiple times on his head and throughout his body, and she then pushed him, causing him to hit a desk.
According to the report, when the fights were done, White grabbed the student “by the collar of his shirt and dragged him”.
[DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks]
White allegedly denied her involvement in the incident and advised that she only tried to pick the victim up from the ground following 2 separate fights that occurred in the class.
She also said that she did not ask anyone if they could “beat up” nor did she encourage them to fight; that is according to the report.
The First Coast YMCA told Action News Jax parents were notified of the incident and sent us a statement:
“The First Coast YMCA was made aware of an incident at Tiger Academy involving a student and a substitute teacher who had been properly vetted by both the First Coast YMCA and Duval County Public Schools. The safety and well-being of our students and staff have and will always be our top priority, and as such, we investigated the matter immediately according to protocol. Upon completion of the internal investigation, we terminated the substitute teacher’s employment. We immediately reported the incident to the Department of Children and Families, who are conducting an ongoing investigation in collaboration with the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office. All further inquiries about the incident should be directed to them.”
[SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]
Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
