Image Credit: @robbystarbuck / X
The Tennessee Conservative [By Paula Gomes] –
A cross-dressing substitute teacher in a Hamilton County, Tennessee, middle school sparked outrage amongst community members on Thursday after the sub allegedly insisted that students only address him using a female title.
According to Soddy Daisy Middle School parents, the man became agitated after 12 and 13-year-old students referred to him as “Sir,” prompting his demand that they call him “Ma’am.”
One student took a photo of the man during class and a parent of the student posted the photo to social media, where it was quickly shared many times over.
The photo shows a man wearing what appears to be a turtleneck with a skirt, or possibly a dress, with sheer, black hose and tall women’s boots. His facial appearance and hair is otherwise of typical male presentation.
For many local parents in this rural and conservative area, this was the first time they were made aware of this particular sub working in their children’s schools. A week earlier, the man allegedly made an appearance at Hixson Elementary School also.
One source told us, “[I] was at a school basketball game [Friday night] and this was all anyone was talking about. Unfortunately, no one really knows too much. Everyone is trying to learn what they can, but the school and district are being tight lipped.”
One Hamilton County School Board member, Steve Slater, addressed concerned citizens via social media on a post from a concerned parent that has since been taken down.
“As your district school board representative, we were all unaware until my phone rang 50 times. Dr. Robertson was unaware as was the ones in charge, even the board,” said Slater. “ESS is a third party that provides subs. The county could not get enough. However, when this contract is up, I will make a motion to not renew and pay our own subs at $100 per day and maybe we can find excellent people to do it. TO BE CLEAR, THIS IS NOT ACCEPTABLE. And, it was addressed tonight by me to everyone involved.”
The sub, who goes by various names in different places on the internet – Karis Renée, Karis Caruso, and Kasizah – goes by she/her pronouns and also they/them.
A recent graduate of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (UTC), where he attended using his given name of Christopher Caruso, it appears that wearing women’s clothing is a somewhat recent development in this young man’s life.
Caruso can be seen wearing men’s clothes in this TikTok post from last June and also in a graduation speech which he posted to his YouTube channel earlier this year.
In that video, Caruso talked about having been part of the Mosaic program at UTC. UTC’s website has this to say about the program:
Mosaic is a multifaceted and comprehensive program developed to support the holistic needs of degree-seeking UTC students on the Autism Spectrum. This program has been in existence since 2008 and was developed out of the request and expressed needs of students with Autism. Our drive to meet the unique needs of students with Autism has made Mosaic one of the most comprehensive programs in the country.
In the graduation speech that Caruso gave, he hinted at having had problems with his mental health – a common struggle for people on the spectrum – and substance abuse issues during his five years at college.
Parents reported that they also found inappropriate videos on Caruso’s YouTube channel discussing explicit details about his gay lifestyle, but they have since been taken down.
In a 2021 survey of almost 2,400 people, researchers discovered that autistic adults were three to nine times more likely to identify as homosexual, asexual, or something other than heterosexual.
UTC opened a dedicated LGBTQ headquarters last fall called the Prism Center.
When Caruso subbed at Soddy Daisy, he did not give students any name that they could use to refer to him. According to one source, the kids were told to refer to him as “Ma’am” or be kicked out of class.
According to parents, children not only felt uncomfortable in the classroom with Caruso, but there are concerns that he may have used a girl’s bathroom while female students were present.
This isn’t the first time that a gender confused individual has been found subbing in a Hamilton County school.
Last year, another male substitute teacher, also dressed as a woman, reportedly made students call him “Mrs” at East Ridge Elementary School.
That teacher was also hired through Education Staffing Solutions (ESS).
Officials of Hamilton County Schools spoke with the staffing agency last year to reiterate their expectations for the “appearance of adults in our schools going forward” but while ESS complies with Tennessee law that requires criminal background checks for subs, it appears nothing has changed as far as dress code policies or looking into the social media presence of those hired.
Hamilton County School Board members Jodi Schaffer and Steve Slater have confirmed that last week’s incident will be addressed at next month’s board meeting.
About the Author: Paula Gomes is a Tennessee resident and reporter for The Tennessee Conservative. You can reach Paula at paula@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
4 Responses
Ok, well, that’s at least a nice in the right direction. But until laws are passed, this crap is going to continue!
As long as people are too stupid to recognize and call out mental illness nothing will happen. Parents unite!
When school boards shirk their RESPONSIBILITY to procure/provide sound people to work at lucifer’s pubic ejikashun institutions and hire lucifer’s dimmercrap Education Staffing Solutions (ESS) or their like, this is the result. This is why school choice, which is just another can of worms, is being pushed. Since God was removed from schools by lucifer’s servants, it’s been a steady downward spiral.
Agree