Greenfield school board accepts resignation of suspended teacher

The board of the Greenfield Exempted Village Schools has voted to accept the resignation of a teacher who was suspended in March after allegedly assaulting two students. 

 During a special meeting held March 31, the board voted to pass a resolution to begin the procedures to terminate the three-year limited contract of Heidi Ferguson, a language arts teacher at Greenfield Middle School.

During the board's April 19 regular session, during the consent agenda, the board voted 5-0 to accept Ferguson's resignation, effective April 2. 

 Ferguson was suspended, effective April 2, "without pay or other fringe benefits during the pendency of the termination proceedings."

Last week, Fouch said that Ferguson had requested a hearing before the board, but a meeting date had not yet been scheduled.

  According to the resolution passed by the board March 31, "On March 29, 2010, Ms. Ferguson asked a sixth grade student at Greenfield Middle School why she had done something. The student responded that she had been dared." 

  Ms. Ferguson then, according to the resolution, asked the student a rhetorical question of a profane and sexual nature. "A second sixth grade student reacted to her statement by laughing; Ms. Ferguson grabbed the second student and pushed her against the wall, causing her to hit her head. She then threw a stapler at the first student."

According to the resolution passed by the board, during a meeting with Fouch on March 30 Ferguson allegedly "admitted to the Superintendent that she made the (statement described in the resolution), including the expletive. She neither denied nor admitted the assault on the second student. She denied the assault on the first student. The superintendent placed Ms. Ferguson on administrative leave."
The Greenfield Police Department investigated the reported assaults on the two students.
Greenfield Chief of Police Tim Hester said April 19 that "at this point it is still an open case. It hasn't been resolved yet. There have been discussions with the prosecuting attorney as to whether or not, depending on the actions of the school, whether to proceed criminally. If in fact they accepted her resignation, we will pass that on to the prosecutor and expect a decision whether or not to proceed or to close our case."