After educators’ arrests, Millsap ISD school board delays action on superintendent contract
The Millsap Independent School District board of trustees considered a separation agreement with Superintendent Edie Martin after she and two educators were arrested this week in connection with the alleged abuse of special education students.
The board discussed a separation agreement in a closed session during a special meeting on Friday, March 21, but did not take action on it, according to the Weatherford Democrat. The news outlet reported that Board Vice President Jon Hartman announced the board would meet again on Monday night to discuss terminating Martin’s contract and placing her on administrative leave among other actions. The Star-Telegram has reached out to Millsap ISD for further comment.
Before board members started their closed session, they heard from about a dozen parents and community members who said they were frustrated and outraged by the district’s handling of alleged abuse against at least three students. The Star-Telegram had reported on an incident involving one of the students after parent Carissa Kozak Cornelius posted a video on Facebook that she said showed a teacher attempting to slap her 10-year-old son, who has autism and is nonverbal, and a teacher’s aide throwing a toy at him.
The teacher, 44-year-old Jennifer Dale, and the aide, 25-year-old Paxton Bean, both face charges of official oppression, which refers to when a public servant intentionally subjects someone to mistreatment; denies or impedes someone “in the exercise or enjoyment of any right, privilege, power, or immunity”; or subjects someone to sexual harassment. Bean also faces a charge of injury to a child with intentional bodily injury. Martin faces a charge of failure to report with the intent to conceal, according to the Parker County Sheriff’s Office.
Public comment at the beginning of the meeting included parents and other family members of the three students, a former employee who said she turned in evidence of the abuse and a member of Texas’ State Board of Education. Speakers voiced their lack of trust in the district, their calls for accountability and complaints about the meeting being held in the morning on a weekday during spring break.
A Fox 4 livestream of the meeting showed a packed board room with some parents wearing a maroon T-shirt that referenced the district’s mascot: “Being the bulldog for those who can’t speak for themselves.”
Parent Victoria Garcia said her 6-year-old daughter Trinity was one of the abused children. Trinity, who has Angelman syndrome and “the mind of an 18-month-old,” was threatened by Dale that she would “put her hands around (Trinity’s) neck and choke her,” according to Garcia. She told a story similar to Kozak Cornelius, where Garcia was uninformed about an incident that may have involved her child until 10 days after it happened. It would be another 13 days until Garcia was told by Superintendent Martin that Dale was accused of verbally assaulting Trinity, the mother said.
“Twenty-three days is how many days my child was denied the right to get any kind of assistance for this abuse. My right as a parent to seek help for Trinity was unlawfully taken by Edie Martin,” Garcia said. “Edie Martin knew this information and maliciously withheld that information from me. What kind of person does that?”
Whitney Price, another mother who said her son was mistreated by staff, asked the school board about what protocols are in place to protect students and how future incidents would be properly handled. Her son Isaac has autism and is moderately verbal, she said.
“As a mother, I trusted the school system to protect my child and ensure his safety. That trust was shattered when those in a position of power chose to cover up the abuse rather than take action to protect our children and hold the two responsible for the abuse accountable,” Price said. “No parent should ever have to experience this pain, and no child should ever be left vulnerable and unheard.”
According to arrest warrant affidavits obtained by the Star-Telegram, Price told investigators that her 8-year-old son reported being hit by Bean. On Jan. 16, school staff told her the boy had gotten a bloody nose from running into a wall, according to the affidavits. When Price asked her son what happened, he said Bean punched him in the nose.
Sheriff’s investigators reviewed the school nurse’s log, and saw that Bean had taken the boy to the nurse on Jan. 16 with a “gushing nosebleed,” according to the affidavits. Bean reported to the nurse that the 8-year-old had hit his nose either on a wall or on her arm while throwing a fit. She said she wasn’t sure which.
The boy was asked by investigators during a March 12 interview about the nosebleed and if he’d ever been hurt at school. He said “yes” and when asked by whom, he said “Ms. Bean,” the affidavits state. Two witnesses also reported that Bean and Dale had given the 8-year-old timeouts lasting anywhere from 15 to 40 minutes. Another child also reported seeing Bean pulling the boy by his ear.
Bean declined to make a statement to the sheriff’s investigators on the advice of her attorney, according to the affidavits.
The affidavits also state that Dale and Bean placed Kozak Cornelius’ son, Alex, in extensive timeouts that could last up to 40 minutes. The two educators are also accused of taunting Alex for two days in a row to the extent that the child was seen covering his ears and rocking back and forth in anxiety.
Another time, witnesses said Alex was rushed into getting ready to go home for the day and then locked outside the classroom after he put his backpack on. Bean could be heard laughing at him from inside the classroom, the affidavits state.
During an interview with Sheriff’s Office investigators, Dale acknowledged that she was seen on video swinging her hand at Alex, but she said that she did so “playfully,” according to the affidavits. Dale also admitted to making crying noises at the 10-year-old and possibly calling him a “crybaby,” but she said that also was intended to be playful, the documents state.
Kensie Davis told the school board at Friday’s meeting that her daughter Aubrie also faced abuse. She said she believed the “several staff members” who told her “everything was fine” before receiving a call more than a week later about the alleged abuse of her daughter. Davis said as a mother of a child who has autism and is nonverbal, you have to piece together and make inferences on what’s going on with your child.
“You have to make your best educated guess on what the situation is with your child. Never in a million years would I have thought my daughter’s behavior issues were from this. Five adults in the classroom, and no one said anything for how long?” Davis asked. “I’m just honestly baffled. There was no support, there was no communication. It was very misleading.”
Jami Riggs, a former Millsap ISD instructional aide who said she presented evidence of abuse of students with special needs to Superintendent Martin, told the board she and other witnesses were asked to sign a document that prevented them from speaking about the case. Riggs said Martin had hired an external investigator “instead of acting in the best interest of the students and reporting to the proper authorities.” On her way to the podium to speak, she received applause from the audience.
“I came forward with video recordings and text messages that clearly depicted disturbing behavior from staff members toward these children. Children who were unable to speak up for themselves. I believed I was doing the right thing. I believed I was protecting those who needed it most,” Riggs said. “On February 28th, my last day with the district, I emailed Dr. Martin asking for an update on the investigation and when the parents would be notified. That was the day I was called into a meeting where I was pressured to delete the videos and text messages I had as evidence. I was asked to erase the truth.”
According to her arrest warrant, Martin contacted a law firm that represents the school district and asked the lawyers to begin an external investigation, but she did not report the suspected abuse to the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services or the Parker County Sheriff’s Office as required by state law. Investigators said they learned that Martin filed a report with the Texas Education Agency on Feb. 28 regarding one of the educators and she reported allegations involving the second educator to the TEA on March 3.
Texas state law requires that suspected abuse be reported within 48 hours.
Martin told a witness and investigators that she made reports to Child Protective Services and law enforcement, but investigators said the superintendent never filed those reports, according to the affidavit. The Sheriff’s Office said it was initially made aware of the allegations on March 4, when a parent of one of the victims made a report.
Brandon Hall, a Republican member of the State Board of Education from Parker County, said he wanted to address the lack of respect to parents. He said after speaking with parents, he was told that no school board members had reached out to them.
“I’m here to ask you to do the right thing, and I don’t believe the right thing has been done, but I’m asking you to be a hero to your community. I’m asking you to step up (and) to take responsibility, because every failure — and as horrified as we are by the actual abuse — every failure is a failure in leadership,” Hall said. “I want to let you know that the eyes of this community are on you and the eyes of Texas are on you this morning.”
Martin’s current superintendent contract spans from Jan. 20 of this year to June 30, 2028. The contract can be terminated by mutual agreement of Martin and the school board in writing. Martin can also resign at any time with the consent of the school board. The board can also dismiss her for “good cause” such as “failure to fulfill duties or responsibilities” or “conviction of a felony or crime involving moral turpitude,” according to the contract.
She earns about $167,300 annually.
Millsap is a small North Texas town about 15 miles west of Weatherford. The school district has an enrollment of about 1,000 students.
This story was originally published March 21, 2025 at 3:22 PM.
