NEWTON COUNTY – A teacher at Alcovy High School is facing heavy criticism for giving students an “ill-advised assignment.”

On Wednesday morning, a photo circulated on social media of what appeared to be an assignment asking students to evaluate the March 19 Senior Skip Day shooting at Denny Dobbs Park. 

Salem High School student Justin Etienne, 18, was a bystander at the park when the conflict broke out. He was shot and succumbed to his wounds that evening. 

Two teenagers, 16-year-old Jarvis Hinton Jr. from Covington and 17-year-old Tashshawn Lyons from Conyers, face murder charges from their alleged involvement in the homicide. Hinton was a student at Newton High School, and Lyons attended Rockdale County High School.

The assignment reportedly took place in a current events class at Alcovy and asked the following questions to students:

• What event happened during the Senior Skip Day at Denny Dobbs Park on March 18?
• Who was involved in the event?
• What are Jarvins [sic] Hinton Jr. and Tashawn [sic] Lyons facing?
• Who was killed?
• Was [Justin] Etienne a bystander?
• Any thoughts about this event?

The assignment also appeared to contain a link to a web article written by The Covington News about Hinton’s arrest.*

Newton County Schools (NCS) Director of Public Relations Sherri Partee confirmed the authenticity of the assignment to The News. In a prepared statement, the district condemned the teacher’s actions, calling the assignment “inappropriate and insensitive.”

“Yesterday, an ill-advised warmup activity was given to students in a Current Events class at Alcovy High School,” the statement read in part. “The task, which had not been reviewed or approved by administrative personnel, referenced the recent tragedy at Denny Dobbs Park.

“Without reservation, we acknowledge that the teacher’s actions were inappropriate and insensitive. While it may have been intended to facilitate a classroom discussion under the guise of current events, the topic should never have been used. As soon as school administrators were made aware of the situation, the activity was suspended, and an internal review was conducted.”

The school system added that the teacher, who was not named in the statement, was not an employee of Newton County Schools but contracted through a third-party agency due to staffing shortages.

Regardless, the incident caused several to express their displeasure on social media.

The Instagram account @justice_4justin, which is run by Etienne’s aunt, was one of many to speak out against the assignment.

“MULTIPLE Students at Alcovy High School are Dm’n me upset that a teacher there made my nephews death incident a graded assignment or an assignment at all!!” the Instagram story stated. “I personally feel it’s inappropriate and they may make the students re live trauma.”

Many others also took exception to the subject matter of the assignment, too.

“That’s so insensitive and ignorant,” posted J’Latae Spear.

“It’s insensitive and disrespectful to the family. That child’s death had NOTHING to do with that teacher’s class or curriculum,” posted Nikia Smith.

As for addressing the next steps, the school system said they would be consulting with the teacher directly.

“We are currently addressing this issue directly with the staff member involved and will use this incident to ensure that greater care and discernment are applied when discussing sensitive topics in the classroom,” the statement read. “Newton County Schools remains committed to providing a safe, respectful, and supportive learning environment for all students.

 “We extend sincere apologies to our students and to all who have been affected or hurt by this.”

* Editor’s Note: An article published by The Covington News was used as part of the teacher’s assignment. Content created by The News aims to inform and educate, and therefore it is available for classroom use. However, The News is not affiliated with the teacher mentioned in this article and does not condone the teacher’s choice to use news content in this manner.