A Buffalo teacher sent home the note above with her pre-kindergarten students and, as you can imagine, mayhem ensued. The Buffalo School District has filed disciplinary action against the teacher, Ms. Sharon Dunnigan, and the parents of the pre-kindergarten students have lashed out at the “offensive” note.
Generally, I am on the side of parents but I have to say I can understand where Ms. Dunnigan is coming from. Keeping our kids clean is one of the basic functions of our jobs as parents and it must be frustrating for a teacher to see children coming to school every day dirty and unkempt. Furthermore, according to the article, teachers are generally the ones who handle hygiene issues albeit with the help of a school counselor so Ms. Dunnigan wasn’t entirely out of line in sending the note.
I am also at a loss to understand the outrage at her sending notes to ALL the kids. That seems as if Ms. Dunnigan tried to be sensitive to the feelings of the children who were the true target of her note. Wouldn’t it have been worse if she had sent the note home only to a few hygiene-challenged children? By sending the note to everyone, none of the kids would be the wiser about who was actually smelly. Actually, I take that back, the parents of the hygiene-challenged children probably know exactly who they are talking about.
The thing that really gets me is the final point Ms. Dunnigan made in the note. She said that the children’s odor was making it difficult for her to do her job. It seems that the administration and parents have forgotten what that job entails — nurturing and teaching their children which requires that she be in close proximity to her students. We complain when teachers are not engaged with their charges yet here we have a teacher who wants to be engaged but can’t because her interaction with her students isn’t pleasant. Her letter may be unpleasant to read but I really think she only wanted to help and was exasperated by what she saw as parental neglect. Isn’t that what we want in a kindergarten teacher? I don’t know about you but I want a teacher who cares even if her tact leaves a lot to be desired.
Black Mothering 
It’s Simple: Way to go Ms. D!
Perhaps the guilty were offended.
My response to those guilty: good!
I am definitely on Ms. Dunnigan’s side and the parents should be ashamed that they are sending their kids to school in dirty, unkempt clothing.
Teachers are obliged to report situations where they suspect neglect or abuse. Children who reek demonstrate the possibility of being neglected. Communicating with parents is a first step in addressing the issue. I can only hope that this teacher has the support of her administrators.
Unfortunately, she doesn’t have the school’s support. They are going to discipline here and plan to institute a policy where the admin will first vet a teacher’s notes.