By Adam Pagnucco.
In one of the most discussed MCPS stories of 2021, a kindergarten student was traumatized by two police officers after he left his elementary school. The video is hard to watch. The incident prompted a lawsuit by the student’s family which the county settled for $275,000.
Justine Pfeiffer, the school’s assistant principal, was present during part of the event. MoCo360 reported:
On Jan. 14, 2020, the 5-year-old boy walked away from the elementary school, prompting administrators to call police, who confronted him less than a quarter-mile from the school and escorted him back.
Over the next hour, as the boy became increasingly upset, the officers called him names such as “little beast” and screamed within inches of his face, mocking his cries, while school district employees watched. The assistant principal at the time, Justine Pfeiffer, can be seen in body camera footage laughing.
Pfeiffer was first suspended and then transferred to another elementary school. After concerns were raised by parents, Pfeiffer was moved to the central office. In the wake of reductions made at the central office due to budget problems, Pfeiffer is being moved again – this time to Silver Creek Middle School in Kensington. The school’s principal, Dr. Tiffany Awkard, made the announcement in a letter to parents and made no effort to conceal Pfeiffer’s job history. Among other comments, Awkard wrote:
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I am committed to transparent and open communication, as this is the foundation of the relationships we have built together in support of the success of Silver Creek Middle School. You may remember an unfortunate police incident from January 2020, at Ms. Pfeiffer’s previous school, East Silver Spring Elementary School. Ms. Pfeiffer was present when two Montgomery County police officers interacted with a 5-year-old student who had walked away from the school. The officers’ behavior towards the student led to an investigation, and subsequently, Montgomery County government reached a settlement with the student’s family following a court case.
As a result of this incident, there were questions about how the incident was handled by all those involved. Following this incident, school leaders in MCPS received further training and information about how to manage and de-escalate such conflicts if they occur again. This has been a significant moment of reflection for Ms. Pfeiffer in her journey towards growth and development following this incident. This experience has strengthened her resolve to advocate for and support all students.
It is important to understand that we all improve through our experiences and the lessons we learn from them. Ms. Pfeiffer is eager to bring her enhanced skills and dedication to our school community. We believe that her passion, experience and strong instructional leadership will serve our school community well. We ask for your support in welcoming Ms. Pfeiffer to Silver Creek Middle School.
I understand that you may have questions, which is why we are open and transparent in this message. In addition, there will be several opportunities for you to get to know Ms. Pfeiffer and the Silver Creek administrative team. We will be providing several meet and greet opportunities throughout the summer.
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On the one hand, the trauma endured by the kindergarten student was undeniably horrific as documented in the video. And if Pfeiffer was indeed laughing during the incident as MoCo360 reported, that’s clearly unacceptable.
On the other hand, Pfeiffer was not charged with any offenses and was not a party to the litigation settled by the county. I’m not aware of any misconduct committed by her before or after the incident. It’s worth asking whether she deserves a chance at redemption, should suffer a total ban from MCPS or should only be deployed to work that does not involve students. I leave that determination to you, the readers.
In the meantime, let’s recognize the forthright way in which Principal Awkard chose to deal with this hiring, which appears to have been made by the central office itself. That must not have been an easy letter to write and I am sure the principal is fielding questions from concerned parents. She deserves credit for doing the tough thing and leveling with the community. This form of communication should serve as a model for the rest of MCPS, which has many tough issues to discuss in the days ahead.
Principal Awkard’s letter is reprinted below.
