A school district is conducting an investigation involving a substitute teacher at Johnson High School in Buda, who allegedly directed students to simulate a murder during a puppet show. The substitute teacher is a long-term theater arts teacher and was suspended pending the outcome.
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The Hays Consolidated Independent School District said in a statement that students were reportedly assigned to stage a puppet show that required the depiction of one puppet being murdered. Additionally, one group of students claimed their skit would have portrayed a mass shooting. However, it is unclear if it was a specific directive from the substitute teacher or an interpretation created to fulfill the assignment’s requirements.
According to Fox 5, the substitute teacher has been suspended from working within the district. Depending on the severity of the findings, the district might have to refer the case to law enforcement and report the incident to the Texas Education Agency educator misconduct portal. The district apologized to families and students for any distress the situation might have caused and committed to prevent a similar situation from happening in the future.
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“The school and the district apologize to the students and their parents for any distress this has caused and pledge to ensure that it does not happen again,”
One parent said that her daughter was uncomfortable with the assignment, and the teacher demanded a more violent depiction after students initially performed the act. He also threatened to issue the students a failing grade if they didn’t follow directions. The incident was reported to the assistant principal, who said that the activity was not part of the school’s approved lesson plans. This is not the first time the substitute teacher has had classroom management issues and expressed concerns since starting at the school in January 2024.
“She has told me in the past that it’s not the first time that this particular substitute teacher does something like this. There have been times other times when he wants to reenact or go through violent situations.”