HARRIS COUNTY, Texas — Three Spring ISD mothers claim a second-grade teacher gave their kids melatonin gummies, a supplement that helps induce sleep, without their consent.
Stormie Young said after school Wednesday, she had asked her 7-year-old daughter about her day at Salyers Elementary School.
“(The teacher) gave it to her, and she said, ‘Here, take this and be quiet,’” Young recalled, of her conversation with her daughter. “(My daughter) said right after that she got sleepy. I said, ‘Well, what did it look like?’ She said it was a purple gummy, like with the little dots on the top, and she said 'I went to sleep.'”
Young said her daughter reported taking the gummy after lunch and recess and sleeping until the end of the school day when she was woken up by a loudspeaker announcement.
“You can’t tell me where on the face of this green earth that is okay,” said Young. “That isn’t okay. You did not have my permission to give my child anything.”
Young said she used a school app to ask other parents whose kids had been sent to that teacher’s class -- due to their usual teacher being out -- to contact her.
Cheryl Ziegler was one of them. She says her 7-year-old daughter also told her the teacher gave her a purple gummy.
“What would have happened if she would have had an allergic reaction?”
Sherika Washington says her son shared the same story.
“I feel like she shouldn’t work with kids ever again,” said Washington.
A Spring ISD spokesperson emailed KHOU the following statement Friday morning:
Spring ISD received information late Thursday evening that a staff member at The International School at Salyers allegedly distributed melatonin gummies to several students on Wednesday afternoon. An investigation into the allegations was immediately launched this morning by our Human Resources Department, which found no evidence of misconduct. As always, the district takes every allegation of educator misconduct seriously, and will take all measures necessary to ensure that our students are educated in a safe and nurturing environment.
When asked about that statement Friday afternoon, the three mothers told KHOU they’re standing by their kids’ word.
“What evidence do you need?” asked Young. “My daughter’s 7. So, she just cooked this up in her brain?”
The mothers also told KHOU they spoke with the school’s principal Friday and were assured this teacher was not on campus and wouldn’t be having any interaction with the children.
They also reported being told an investigation was still ongoing.
KHOU reached out to Spring ISD Friday afternoon to clarify the status of additional investigations, disciplinary actions, and the teacher’s employment status but had not heard back.