Sumter Headstart teacher charged after reportedly having physical contact with 2 boys
A Sumter Headstart instructor was charged Thursday after she reportedly had physical contact with two toddlers in her care.
Gladys Ricks, 67, of Mayesville faces two counts of unlawful conduct toward a child after two incidents at her classroom at Rubye J. Johnson Headstart at 1155 N. Lafayette Drive.
A former employee of Headstart filed a report with Sumter Police Department on Wednesday alleging Ricks had physical contact on Oct. 11 with a 3-year-old boy and on Nov. 14 with another 3-year-old boy. Neither of the children was injured. The incidents were filmed on a private phone, and the videos will not be released by the department.
Headstart has a zero-tolerance policy of physical contact with students, including corporal punishment.
Ricks was booked at the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office Detention Center.