School Under Fire For Creating 'Smash Space' For Teachers
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) -- For a lot of people, it may feel good to hit something with a bat, but parents at one Maryland school said that practice has no place near their children.
A sign in the front of Kensington Parkwood Elementary School read 'practice random acts of kindness.'
However, a sign in the back of the school was one of a different kind that encouraged teachers to grab bats… and 'Enjoy The SMASH!'
"It was outside on the loading dock where they throw the trash into the trash trucks," Tom Cosgrove said.
The principal at Kensington was under fire on Thursday after creating a 'smash space' for teachers and staff.
"When I first heard about it I started laughing, thinking well I bet the teachers need it after being in a room all day with kids," Cosgrove said.
Some parents did not find the smash room to be a laughing matter.
The school said teachers were allowed to hit an old rocking chair with a bat on the loading dock outside of the school.
Ticked off parents sounded off on a PTA listserv calling this "outlandish" and "hard to believe."
"This was maybe a poor judgment decision," Corry Hoffeditz, a parent and substitute teacher, said. "Maybe it wasn't the right thing but it's completely been taken out of context. It was really harmless. None of the children knew about it until now."
The principal wrote a letter to parents apologizing for the "smash space" where she said her intentions were good.
It was an opportunity to give her staff an outlet.
The destruction went on away from the eyes and ears of children.
A spokesperson for Montgomery County Public Schools said:
"MCPS does not condone this behavior by our staff. It is counter to our mission and our values. We take this matter very seriously and continue to investigate this incident."
