Monticello High mayhem: Video of teacher “assault” obtained

In a seemingly unprecedented extracurricular journalistic endeavor, the Daily Progress printed a clarification to a story they never ran—in response to a Schilling Show report on violence at Monticello High School (MHS).

Acting in collusion with Albemarle County Public Schools (ACPS), the Progress published the following on November 15:

ACPS: Online rumors of teacher assault unfounded

A Monticello High School teacher hurt his finger after breaking up a lunchtime “scuffle” between two students, according to an Albemarle County schools spokesman, contrary to online reports that a teacher was punched in the head by a student and taken from the school in an ambulance.

Spokesman Phil Giaramita said a scuffle did occur around lunchtime Friday between two students and was quickly settled by two faculty members.

“In doing so, one of the faculty hurt his finger,” Giaramita wrote in an email. “He later drove to one of those walk-in medical centers to have his finger checked. No teacher was beaten. No one left in an ambulance. There were no fights afterward.”

The Albemarle County Police Department did respond to a related disorder at the school Friday after the scuffle and took a juvenile into custody, a spokeswoman said.

A video of the incident, obtained by the Schilling Show, seems to contradict the ACPS narrative of a “‘scuffle’ between two students being broken up by two teachers,” and it confirms essential elements of the original Schilling Show report:

Unofficial reports from multiple parties describe an MHS teacher being assaulted on campus. This occurred when an upset student “charged” from a counselor’s office. As the teacher tried to stop the student, the teacher was punched several times in the head, with injuries so severe that he was transported from the school by ambulance. The offending student later was removed in handcuffs upon arrival of Albemarle County Police.

Immediately upon receipt of requested elucidation from ACPS (more than 19 hours after requested), the Schilling Show updated the story to clarify that no ambulance was involved:

UPDATE #1 11/13/2021 5:14 PM: An Albemarle County Schools spokesperson responded 19 hours after viewing a Schilling Show email inquiry: “thank you for checking on the accuracy of this report. No ambulance. The description of a teacher being beaten is far from the truth. A teacher was assaulted, which led to him driving himself to one of the emergency medical offices to have a finger checked.”

The ACPS account diminishing the teacher’s injuries as having “his finger checked,” again seems contrary to video evidence where one of the involved adults is seen rubbing his head after what appears to be physical contact with the student. As reported by The Schilling Show from a third-party:

“He (the teacher) had a welt on his head. The welt was seen by multiple teachers when he returned.”

In the interest of full transparency, readers may draw their own conclusions by watching video of the “scuffle between two students” below: