Image Credit: Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office & Canva.
Article by Olivia Lupia, Tennessee Conservative News –
The case of Clarksville special education teacher Lavanda Renee Rife, who stands accused of child abuse, neglect, and assault, is renewing a push by a local legislator to revive a bill requiring special education training for all teachers.
Rife was indicted by a grand jury in June for an incident allegedly taking place in April with charges of child abuse, neglect, endangerment of a child 8 years old or less, and assault.
The Clarksville-Montgomery School System (CMCSS) has not yet fired Rife because they say she is entitled to due process but says she was placed on administrative leave beginning April 9, pending investigations.
Questions have been raised about some discrepancies in the information from the district about the incident, including the district’s statement they suspended Rife on April 9 but listed the incident date as April 10, which the district has not answered. Parents have also been pressing for answers, especially as the case reportedly involves a special needs child, but the district has not been forthcoming, and details of the incident remain hidden.
In response, Representative Ronnie Glynn (D-Clarksville-District 67) is planning to revive a bill from last year that would require schools to incorporate skills training on “positive behavioral interventions and supports, conflict prevention, functional behavior assessments, de-escalation, and conflict management into its behavior intervention training program.”
Glynn believes that requiring the additional training could have made a difference in Rife’s case.
“I think had that teacher had the de-escalation training and conflict resolution, we wouldn’t be sitting here talking about it,” he said.
If he wins his reelection bid in November, Glynn is hoping to reintroduce his bill with bipartisan support after it failed this past legislative session.
“When something happens with a special-needs kid, a child, it can push a teacher to somewhere they didn’t want to go,” Glynn added. “And so that temperament has to be trained and educated so that they don’t go there.”
Special education consultant Theresa Nicholls agreed that additional de-escalation tools would be beneficial, saying that while there is “no excuse” for abusive behavior, the teachers have “a big job.”
Meanwhile, Rife is maintaining her innocence and will not speak to media. She has a settlement hearing on November 6.
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About the Author: Olivia Lupia is a political refugee from Colorado who now calls Tennessee home. A proud follower of Christ, she views all political happenings through a Biblical lens and aims to utilize her knowledge and experience to educate and equip others. Olivia is an outspoken conservative who has run for local office, managed campaigns, and been highly involved with state & local GOPs, state legislatures, and other grassroots organizations and movements. Olivia can be reached at olivia@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
