Texas School District Probes Student’s Claim Of Bullying, Being Forced Into Clothes Dryer

The Sheldon Independent School District of Texas is investigating a middle school student’s claim of being forced into a clothes dryer by at least one older student. The boy's mother believes the incident involved bullying.

According to KHOU 11 News, the sixth-grader’s family said that the incident took place at the Null Middle School on Tuesday afternoon while students were helping a coach with athletic laundry. The student said at least one older student forced him inside a clothes dryer, leading his mother to speak with school officials Wednesday.

The boy’s mother wants disciplinary action following the incident, telling the outlet that at least one student from the said school has been put under in-school suspension. Sheldon ISD has not confirmed the suspension.

“We are taking this very seriously and campus administrators are actively investigating these allegations. Although we cannot discuss any specifics, the District will discipline involved students in accordance with the Student Code of Conduct,” the school district said in a statement.

News of the incident came just days after student-monitoring company Gaggle found a significant increase in alarming incidents among Texas students. Gaggle, whose clients include Eanes ISD and Austin ISD, monitors the online activity of students, and in one example of a post provided to KXAN-TV, a student wrote: “I want to die, nobody cares that I’m hanging on by a thread.”

Gaggle data revealed that in 2021, there were 43,000 incidents of suicide ideation, school violence, self-harm and bullying, marking a 225% spike on the said incidents compared to the previous year.

In October, a 7th-grade student from Copperas Cove, Texas, spearheaded a campaign to raise awareness about anti-bullying in her community.

Student Dorianna Gilbert told 25 News KXXV at that time that she understands “bullying is a hard topic to talk about” but she was inspired to come up with the decorating contest revolving around anti-bullying themes as she remembered her own experiences of getting bullied. “I remember those times and how I felt, and I see what people go through every day and I want to put a stop to it,” she said.