FLORENCE, S.C. (WBTW) — The fallout continues at a Florence elementary school that came under fire last week after photos of workers posing as Border Patrol agents during an Hispanic heritage celebration emerged.
On Monday, Florence Schools 1 Superintendent Richard O’Malley said longtime principal Julie Smith and vice principal Marci Gatewood have removed from their posts.
Their dismissals come days after an undisclosed number of school employees were fired or placed on leave as a result of the photo posted July 31 to Royall Elementary’s Facebook page.
It depicted staff members wearing sombreros and other Hispanic attire. Two people are shown wearing gray t-shirts that read “U.S. Border Patrol.”
“I sincerely hope the prompt actions taken illustrate to the entire community how seriously my administration took this event, and that we will not tolerate such ignorance in our schools,” he wrote in a letter to parents. “As a school district, we are so much better than this.”
A now-scrubbed biography on Royall Elementary’s website described Smith — who’d been at the school for more than 20 years — as fostering a “supportive and innovative learning environment” that brought multiple accolades to the 1101 Cheraw Drive campus.
O’Malley opened his letter “both disappointed and humiliated” about the photo.
“Each school year we are presented with challenges. As we teach our students, we will take the lessons that we have learned from this event and grow from it as a district,” he wrote.
The picture quickly sparked outrage among several groups, including the Florence County Democratic Party, Racial Justice Network and Florence Branch of the NAACP.
“These actions by school officials foster an agenda that has no place in our public schools and can only cause confusion and conflict in the school, in the community and on social media,” NAACP branch president Jerry Keith Jr. said in a statement.
Christopher Rogers, the district’s STEM director, is serving as Royall’s acting administrator, while John W. Moore Middle School curriculum coordinator Brittanny Bennett steps in as assistant principal starting Tuesday.
