HIALEAH, Fla. – Parents at Horeb Christian School in Hialeah expressed their surprise but support for first-grade teacher Beth Ann Nemec, 47, a day after she was released from jail on child abuse charges.
"The kids are in a very nice and safe atmosphere, I was in shock," said Marian Alvarez, whose child attends the school.
Two other parents who have children in the same class where the alleged abuse occurred said they have never had an issue with Nemec.
"My son loved her," said Lorraine Lewis. "I have nothing bad to say about her. I think she was an amazing teacher and I'm very sad about this."
"My daughter has been in that classroom since the first day of school," added another parent, Grace Ramos. "We've never had a problem with her. She always came up to us with respect."
Nemec is charged with seven counts of child abuse.
On one occasion, a 7-year-old boy told his mother that Nemec placed her hand over his mouth to prevent him from talking. He said she also flicked him on his cheek because he was talking too much.
In a separate incident, a 6-year-old boy told his mother that Nemec spanked him on his buttocks because he was sitting on his feet in his chair. He said she also hit him on the top of his head and would place her hand over his mouth to prevent him from talking. He also claims Nemec would flick his fingers when he would raise his hand in class.
According to the arrest report, another 6-year-old boy was a victim of Nemec. Police said the victim's mother observed a bruise on his left arm along with several scratches on his right inner arm. When she asked what happened, he told her Nemec tightly grabbed his arms causing the injuries. He said he told his teacher that she was hurting him and she stated that she didn't care.
When advised of the allegations, Nemec told detectives, "I didn't know I scratched him," the arrest report states.
While the charges may seem severe to some, police contend the law is the law.
"She crossed that line," Hialeah police Lt. Carl Zogby told Local 10. "She is not authorized -- not by the school, not by the law and not by the parents -- to touch the children in any way in a disciplinary fashion."
"It doesn't change my opinion of the school," said parent Eva Bello. "I think it could have been random acts that could have happened here or any other place."
And like Bello, most parents told Local 10 News that they still stand behind the school.
"I think this is an amazing school," said Lewis. "And like I said, I'm really sad that this happened and I'm not the only parent that feels like this."
School principal Cindy Montes de Oca released a statement to Local 10 News on Wednesday.
"At Horeb Christian School, the safety of our children and staff is paramount," she said. "Our school has zero tolerance for any type of behavior that would endanger the safety of our students. We are very saddened by the allegations against Mrs. Nemec and are fully cooperating with the authorities as well as conducting our own internal investigation."
The principal also said Nemec was vetted according to protocol by the Florida Department of Children and Families prior to being hired. She said Nemec was hired full-time this school year after serving as an on-call substitute teacher during the last school year.
"We will continue to cooperate with authorities throughout this process," she said.
Officials with the Department of Children and Families told Local 10 News that they have a prior history with Nemec, but did not elaborate on the previous allegations made against her.
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