28-02-2025
Oklahoma education board suspends teaching license of Hugo special ed teacher accused of abuse
The teaching license of a special education teacher in Hugo was suspended by the Oklahoma State Board of Education amid a law enforcement investigation into reports of child abuse.
Investigators say a special education teacher abused two of her students at Hugo Middle School for months while three other employees in the classroom did nothing.
Yolanda Dunbar was sent home Jan. 16 after a principal saw possible abuse on a surveillance camera feed and called the Choctaw County Sheriff's Office, a sheriff's deputy reported. Dunbar is now facing two felony counts of child abuse and is facing termination from the school district in far southeastern Oklahoma. She denies abusing her students.
Dunbar's license is effectively suspended pending a revocation hearing to be conducted by a hearing officer.
Four other educators — three paraprofessionals and a teacher — who allegedly witnessed the abuse have resigned, the school district said. One of them voluntarily surrendered their teaching license to the state Thursday.
The Oklahoman is not naming them because they have not been charged.
More: An Oklahoma special ed teacher promised an 'EPIC' year. Prosecutors say she was abusive
The board also voted to suspend a former Haworth Public Schools teacher's license pending a revocation hearing to be conducted by a hearing officer.
Terah Wright is facing three felony counts of soliciting sexual conduct or communication with a minor by use of technology. She's facing another felony count of possessing juvenile pornography.
Wright's charges are related to alleged inappropriate relationships with four male students with ages ranging from 14-18, and an 11-year-old female, according to the probable cause affidavit in a warrant issued by the McCurtain County District Court.
Accusations against Wright in the affidavit include sharing inappropriate images and videos with the alleged victims, and possessing child pornography. Wright denied such accusations, according to investigators.
The board voted to accept the hearing officer's proposed findings of fact, conclusions of law on the teacher certificate of Stephen Gainor. His license was revoked by the board two years after being accused of physical abuse.
The Oklahoma City Public Schools district fired Gainor in May 2023 after placing him on leave the previous February. Gainor didn't attend the special district board meeting at which his termination was considered.
Gainor, a former special education teacher at Webster Middle School, reportedly placed the student in an improper hold in his classroom and held the child's head against the ground for more than three minutes, according to a school district record documenting the incident.
The board suspended Gainor's license by an emergency order in May 2024.
Contributing: Staff writer Nolan Clay
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OSBE suspends Hugo Oklahoma teacher's license amid abuse allegations
