A Fairfield, Ohio, high school teacher has been put on paid administrative leave and is being investigated after making racially charged comments toward a student of Asian heritage.
The comment, which was recorded by a student’s smartphone in class and obtained by WCPO TV, showed Katherine Klimach, a Butler Tech teacher assigned to Fairfield Senior High School, saying, “We’re waiting for it to come on, you break it already. You Chinese are supposed to make computers, and you’re breaking them instead.”
The student who recorded the comment reported it to the school on Oct. 6, which immediately contacted Butler Teach officials, said Gina Gentry-Fletcher, spokeswoman for the Fairfield Schools.
Klimach was put on leave that same day, according to Michael Beauchat, a Butler Tech spokesman.
“The content of the video does not align with our mission or our core values,” Beauchat said to Cincinnati.com in a statement. “Comments like those heard on the video have no place in the classroom, and we fully understand the community’s disappointment. We are disappointed too.”
Though the investigation has yet to be completed, the teacher involved in the incident has already started cultural sensitivity training and has since expressed remorse for making the remark, according to Beauchat.
Klimach, who has taught since the 1990s, has received a written reprimand. The Journal-News reported she has a history of citations for other comments, including one instance in which, when a minority student asked a question without raising their hand, Klimach said, “That’s not how we do things in our country.”
Officials with Fairfield High School have asked Kalimach not to return. “We will respect the wishes of the district and the teacher won’t be back in Fairfield,’’ Beauchat said.
This incident comes nearly two years after the suicide of Emilie Olson, an Asian American Fairfield Middle School student whose parents said bullying contributed to her death. The school district has since put into effect anti-bullying initiatives and programs.
