A Texas guidance counselor has filed a lawsuit seeking back pay and damages from a school she claims forced her to “resign under duress” when she came to the defense of a special needs student who was allegedly assaulted by a teacher. Gabriana Clay-White filed her petition in a Dallas County court earlier this week, more than a year after the incident took place.
WFAA-TV reports that in the filing, she claimed that on May 18, 2022, she was asked to assist a student who has a reading-related disability. Clay-White said she asked the child what transpired between them and the teacher. The child told the counselor that the teacher “took my chips, and she’s dumb.” The educator overheard the pupil’s remark and allegedly initiated a confrontation. “Oh, I’m dumb?” she reportedly asked before she allegedly pulled the child’s chair from under them, causing them to fall to the ground.
Clay-White’s petition goes on to allege that “the teacher then used a racial slur toward the student, saying, ‘Only dumb N-word in this room is the one with the blue shirt who can’t read.’” At the time, the child had on a blue shirt. The teacher is then accused of pulling the student’s chair and causing them to fall to the ground for a second time. At that point, the counselor claims she escorted the pupil out of the classroom. In the midst of exiting, the child is alleged to have taken a swing at the teacher but missed and fell to the ground.
The unnamed educator reportedly responded to the failed attempt at hitting her by stepping on the child’s chest. Infuriated by the interaction between her and the student, the teacher then allegedly exclaimed, “The only b**ch is your mom.” The counselor reported the volatile incident to the school and Child Protective Services the following day.
On May 20, she provided a statement regarding the incident to human resources personnel. Less than two weeks later, on June 2, Clay-White was informed that she violated the school’s ethics code and was told she could either resign or be terminated. She resigned the next day. District personnel told WFAA-TV they were unaware of the lawsuit and were unable to comment on personnel matters without the counselor’s consent.