Kingdergarten Teacher Under Investigation. Children Interviewed Without Parents Present.
BY: ANDREW COLTON | Editor and Publisher
UPDATE (10:06 a.m. October 23, 2024): THE TEACHER HAS BEEN CLEARED. READ THE LATEST HERE.
BOCA RATON, FL (BocaNewsNow.com) (Copyright © 2024 MetroDesk Media, LLC) — A kindergarten teacher at Whispering Pines Elementary School in Boca Raton is under investigation by Florida’s Department of Children and Families after multiple reports of abuse were filed with the state agency. The teacher has not been in the classroom for several days.
BocaNewsNow.com is not naming the teacher for now. We spoke with the teacher Monday evening from her home in north Broward County. She denied all allegations against her, said the claims “are not real,” and asked us to not report the story. The Palm Beach County School District confirmed to BocaNewsNow.com that DCFS is involved with an investigation in the school, but would not offer specifics citing confidentiality rules and regulations.
Multiple parents of students at Whispering Pines Elementary tell BocaNewsNow.com that DCFS investigators were in the teacher’s kindergarten classroom over the past several days, speaking with students without parents being present. Parents say they were only notified that their children were interviewed when an assistant principal called after the interviews were complete. DCFS did not respond to “on the record” requests for information from BocaNewsNow.com.
The allegations, according to those familiar with the situation, are said to be physical and emotional, but not sexual in nature. The teacher in question previously worked in another area school district and has lived in the northeast. It was not immediately clear if she held teaching positions out of state. The teacher has no criminal record. Her educator’s license with the State of Florida is in good standing, according to records reviewed by BocaNewsNow.com.
Parents at Whispering Pines Elementary, already livid over the school’s handling of the Chirag Patel situation just weeks ago, say this is another major failing by Principal Barbara Riemer. Parents say they complained about this teacher last year, claiming she displayed abusive tendencies, but allege that Barbara Riemer did nothing but move the teacher to kindergarten over the summer. When new allegations were made this year by parents who knew nothing about the teacher’s alleged history at Whispering Pines, Principal Barbara Riemer allegedly did nothing again. That’s when parents called DCFS and asked for an investigation.
“I trusted the district chain of command for twelve weeks,” wrote one parent in a post to a private social media group provided to BocaNewsNow.com. “The situation with this teacher has been known to Riemer since the beginning of last year.”
Wrote another parent to the same private group: “I will just say the reasons DCFS came out are very valid, well documented, and have been protected for months and this is where we are at. We have done our due diligence as parents, trusting administrators will keep our kids safe.”
Some parents, however, say the allegations are false, that nothing bad could ever happen at Whispering Pines Elementary, and that it’s a small group of disgruntled parents looking for problems. Whispering Pines Elementary, located on Lyons Road just south of Clint Moore Road, serves some of the wealthiest households in Palm Beach County.
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Time to clean house! Teachers are going to have to start wearing body cams…. Our children are too precious to be left to chance.
This is excellent reporting. Thank you for calling the teacher and thank you for calling the school district. So many want to sweep this under the rug and shoot messengers of bad news. We all need to protect kids.
Thank god you reported on this. I’m in the online group and there are actually parents who are scared of negative things coming out about the school. They think everything is private. There are some crazy parents living here.
It’s actually super scary how there are these nasty parents who want to bury all bad news regarding this school. They are harassing other parents who want this to be exposed! They are afraid of the way the school will look to their snobby friends! Keep reporting! Save the children! You nasty moms should be ashamed of yourselves! You loook like fools!!!
I have two kids in the school and have been following the drama in the private groups. I’ve never seen anything like the insane moms posting and posting. We lived in New York before moving here. This is crazy land. There are parents trying to create their own new private group dedicated to retaliating against people who put negative information about whispering pines in the public. They think this is some sort of secret or that they are in some sort of club because they are in Boca Raton. Some of these parents are nuts and seem to be trying to keep an image going instead of protecting their children. I’m so glad this was reported in a way where the teacher wasn’t named but we now know there really is an investigation.
Exactly! I private group against the one brave girl in town, they are awful…praise the ones who are not afraid!!! Mean women…it’s a super ugly look’
I’m a teacher in the school. I have no idea if the allegations are true or not but I do know that this school and its leadership like to cover things up, so I’m all for this being reported. I think BocaNewsNow did a very good job by not naming the teacher but calling the teacher for comment which is what news organizations are supposed to do. I also know that this school is not the same as it was before The Bridges and Seven Bridges and all of those communities opened up. Parents used to be respectful and helpful. Many of the parents that moved here over the past few years are rude and always looking for a problem. I want kids to be safe but I also wish that parents would stop being bonkers. If you want to go to private school, go to private school. This is public school.
Exactly! I private group against the one brave girl in town, they are awful…praise the ones who are not afraid!!! Mean women…it’s a super ugly look’
People moved down from New York and New Jersey. They have nothing but problems in The Bridges and 7 Bridges.
To the teacher on here, I agree completely. This was well written, and it did not name the teacher She is innocent until proven guilty.
The school has become a very unwelcoming place for the “normal” people. The PTA is now a group of friends who ran together to fill the spots. They bullied out the past president. And they don’t make anyone feel welcome. It’s a very nasty environment. A concerned parent involved in this case posted in a private group to let others be aware that there may be potentially other victims. The mean moms immediately tried to shut her down and taunted another mom on the chat. They then opened a new chat blocking the one mom only looking out for the good of the children. I’m embarrassed. This is my child’s school. I’m embarrassed. These mothers are the ones in control. Something needs to change. The kids and teachers deserve more than this. But this all stems from the non-disclosure of any information by principal Remer. She needs to go she knew about this teacher and the abuse since last year please report all you can. Something needs to change here in West Boca..
I have always been treated kindly at my son’s school, He has had no problems. We do know that his favorite PE teacher left because of The Principal, and many teachers are talking about leaving. This makes us upset. As to the chat, they are nasty women who harass on a public forum. It’s is embarrassing to watch, and their husbands should be ashamed of them…..keep it to yourselves, the parents of whispering pines are sick of them bullying to quiet the whistleblowers….shame on you all.
Thank you for reporting this in such a professional way. I actually received a message from one of the nasty ladies in the chat yesterday. One of the meanies trying to shush the others from coming forward, and Speaking to their children. She had two concerns. Number one how this will effect next year‘s enrollment numbers and number two that Boca news now will get a hold of the email… that says everything..
I wish the immature, mean-girl moms realized how ridiculous they look and that no one actually likes them. At best people just tolerate them to avoid a fight.
It’s ironic how the people trying so hard to put on a fake image actually make themselves look the worst.
Well this is a nice surprise!!!! Although deeply disturbed by the allegations, this teacher is innocent unless they prove her otherwise.
I was the mom who they were trying to hush in our general school group chat. They told me that was the wrong forum. What was simply happening was a mother from this year‘s classroom was trying to get a hold of parents from the previous years class, so maybe they could find out if their child had been abused as well. A bunch of bullies jumped on trying to shush me telling me how wonderful the teacher was. I never said otherwise I do not know this teacher. What I do know, is that every parent in the school had a right to know this information, and we only knew because a mother in the class received an email with the DCF caseworkers phone number . Those parents trying to shush everybody are absolutely ridiculous and they made a fool of themselves. They started another group chat, banning me, so nothing negative can be said. it’s embarrassing. They’re embarrassing and they should definitely maybe put their kids in private schools if they wish.
My main concern here is the children. I pray no one was hurt, but from what I’m hearing, there may be some really true allegations. The investigators will get to the bottom of it, but there’s no way people should try to victim. Shame these mothers or others..
There are some serious morality issues here..
We can only hope their children don’t act the way they do horrendous
These accusations seem alarming, but I will wait to see what DCF reports before passing judgement. As far as the “mean parents” on a school wide general information page… the administrators of the group chat are unhinged and on a power trip. They will do anything to tear down the PTA bc they are upset many active members live in GL communities. Gripe up and volunteer if you would like to make difference. The world might be unkind, but the members of the Whisepring community are good people. Even the ones who live in pretty houses.
Kelly. Nobody hushed you. This isn’t even your child’s classroom. People didn’t know if private information from school to one class should be shared on a very public, informal text message that was sent to a non official very much unconfirmed parents text message viya WhatsApp labeled now as “Whispering Pines parents who want to not hide things” You chimed in because you are a self proclaimed savior of our school. Stop the nonsense. No one is hushing anyone . People were concerned that unproven rumor & allegations that were popping up on this WhatsApp without any proof. My son happened to have a positive experience in the same class a year prior. Please let people with actual information speak up on this before piping in. Sorry Ma’am, this simply is not your story to tell.
This is incorrect. A screenshot of an email from Dr. Riemer was shared. The investigation was not a “rumor.”
Every parent in the school deserves to know that a teacher in the scho is being investigated for abusing her children. NNot all children offer up information easily, and some need some support in expressing what’s going on.
This is a huge deal, and every parent in the school (not just the class) deserves to know if in fact a teacher was abusing students.
This is the second major issue at this school this school year, and it’s only October. This all comes down to administration not communicating effectively with the parents.
It’s sad that it’s come down to 2 groups of parents going at each other because everybody is missing the point of what this is really about – parents working together to be INFORMED about what goes on when we drop our kids at school for the day.
It’s really disheartening to see negative comments about the PTA at Whispering Pines, especially from people who don’t know all the facts. The PTA works tirelessly to support our school, providing valuable programs, events, and resources for our kids. From organizing fundraisers that bring in new equipment to planning fun activities that build school spirit, they do so much behind the scenes. These parents who felt “left out” need to realize that confidentiality needs to be respected until all of the facts are disclosed. Stop getting your information from a group chat on what’s app, spreading rumors, and let the authorities do their job!
Ed. Note: PTA’s are not entitled to “confidential” information. We’re unsure if that’s what you intended to write, but so there is no misunderstanding.
When I used the term “confidential information,” I was speaking generally about sensitive details related to the incident that, when discussed openly without facts can easily lead to misunderstanding. My intention was not to suggest that the PTA is entitled to confidential legal or private information, but rather to emphasize the importance of ensuring that the right details are clearly communicated to avoid misinterpretation.
We appreciate the clarification.
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