SUMTER, S.C. — Sumter police have arrested a Head Start instructor in Sumter after separate incidents in her classroom involving two little boys.
Gladys Ricks, 67, is charged with two counts of unlawful conduct toward a child. Ricks is an employee of Rubye J. Johnson Headstart on Lafayette Drive.
Officers say the incidents were reported to police by a former employee of the center. One of the cases involved a 3-year-old boy back on October 11, while the other was another 3-year-old boy on November 14.
In both cases, police say Ricks had physical contact with the boys. The incidents were caught on camera. News19 has obtained copies of the videos.
Neither of the boys was injured. Head Start has a zero tolerance policy for corporal punishment of or physical contact with students.
Annette Tucker, the chief executive officer for Wateree Community Action, which is over the Head Start center, said that Ricks has been fired.
"Wateree Community Actions, Inc. was not aware of any child abuse until this [Thursday] morning when notified by Sumter County Police Department," Tucker said in a statement. "Wateree has a zero-tolerance policy for corporal punishment or physical contact with students. The employee was terminated, and we are working diligently with the City of Sumter and the families with the investigation."
Johnson was booked at the Sumter County jail and was given was $1,000 personal recognizance bond, which means she does not have to pay money to be released.
