Special Education News in Brief

Teacher Gives Student With Autism ‘Most Annoying Male’ Trophy

By The Associated Press — June 11, 2019 1 min read
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An Indiana school district has issued an apology after a special-needs teacher awarded an 11-year-old student with autism a trophy naming him the “most annoying male” of the school year.

The Bailly Preparatory Academy teacher gave the boy the trophy in May during a 5th grade awards luncheon attended by students, parents, and the school principal.

Rick Castejon, the boy’s father, said his family was blindsided. “As a principal or teacher, you should never let this happen to any student.”

Gary Community School Corp. issued an apology to the boy and his family in a statement last week. Emergency manager Peter Morikis called it an “unfortunate occurrence” and declined to comment on the employment status of the teacher involved.

A version of this article appeared in the June 12, 2019 edition of Education Week as Teacher Gives Student With Autism ‘Most Annoying Male’ Trophy

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