The superintendent of a Michigan public school district told Blaze News that the United States Secret Service launched an investigation after one of the district's elementary school teachers replied inappropriately to a social media post referencing an assassination — the day after Donald Trump won back the White House earlier this month.

The assassination post — and the teacher's reply to it — got fast attention after Libs of TikTok published a screenshot of the post Tuesday, along with the teacher's apology.

'If the teacher is charged with a felony, she will be dismissed.'

The initial post — which was not from the teacher in question — reads "nothing an assasination [sic] can't take care of."

The reply from Ashley Parker — who teaches elementary art for Farwell Area Schools — reads as follows: "Normally I would never wish this on anyone, but now... and let's hope for a 2fer... We have ALL lost. Just many of us don't realize it yet..."

Parker on Nov. 14 posted an apology on the school district's Facebook page. It reads as follows:

Dear FAS Community,

I am deeply sorry for the comment that I posted the morning after the election. As the parent of a young child and as an educator, I know that my words and actions are closely watched by those around me, and I am fastidious about my behavior at all times because of this fact. I am ashamed that I let my emotions get the better of me in that moment. I am not that person. I understand that my actions may have broken your trust, and for that, I am truly sorry.

Those who know me, know my strength of character, and know the kind of person that I aspire to be in this world. I made an egregious error, one that will not happen again. I take full responsibility for my words and I am willing to reflect on this experience and learn from it, so that I can become a better person. I am committed to upholding the values and standards that I strive to live by.

I hope that you can find it within yourself to forgive me and my actions.

Thank you.

— Ashley Parker, K-5 Art

While the district's Facebook post indicated on Wednesday afternoon that more than 230 comments have come in, only a handful are visible.

Parker's apology also was posted on the district's website last week.

District superintendent speaks out

Steve Scoville, superintendent of Farwell Area Schools, told Blaze News on Wednesday that the issue was brought to the school's attention the day after the election, and he believes the screenshot of the social media exchange is accurate.

"An investigation by the Clare County Sheriff's Department and the United States Secret Service was conducted, and to my knowledge, no charges have been filed," Scoville told Blaze News. "If the teacher is charged with a felony, she will be dismissed. At this point, it doesn't appear that she will be charged with a felony, but I have to wait for the process to run its course. I do believe that all U.S. Citizens are innocent until proven guilty."

Scoville added to Blaze News that he performed a risk assessment — which is used whenever staff, students, or community members make a threat — and that "the staff member in question has no credible plan or means to carry the threat out."

He noted to Blaze News that the risk assessment finding doesn't mean the teacher's post was acceptable: "Neither the original post [nor] Ashley's response were appropriate."

However, Scoville told Blaze News he's hoping to turn this negative into a positive.

"Mrs. Parker has been doing a great job with our students, and it is truly unfortunate that her actions have clouded her otherwise outstanding performance. Dismissing Mrs. Parker would very likely discontinue our K-5 Art Program for the remainder of the 2024-2025 school year, as we had zero highly qualified applicants. The teacher shortage in central Michigan area is very real!" he told Blaze News. "My fear is that dismissal may punish our students more than the individual that made the post. Although dismissal would be the easiest course of action, I am not sure it is the correct or best action for our students."

Scoville added to Blaze News that while the district has taken disciplinary action against Parker, she "has not been terminated. Doing the right thing is not always doing the easy thing." He also told Blaze News on a Wednesday phone call that despite Parker having "threatened [the] candidate I voted for," it "wouldn't matter" if the threat was against another candidate; it's unacceptable either way.

Scoville also told Blaze News that after he made it clear to Parker that the district doesn't condone her comment, he hopes Parker has a "chance to recover and move forward."

He also told Blaze News that Parker has received threats after her comment began getting attention, and her address has been doxxed. In addition, Scoville said, "The amount of hate that has been directed at our staff is incredible and terribly sad. I find it ironic that so many people upset by Mrs. Parker's inappropriate post have chosen to share their own version of hate and direct it at the staff member who answered their [phone] call."

On the subject of hatred, Scoville emphasized the following to Blaze News:

I served with U.S. Army for 18 months in the Balkans. An interesting fact is that Serbians and Albanians have hated each other 1,300 years. (This led up to the Balkans War where neighbor butchered neighbor.) Although when you asked either side, they knew that they were supposed to hate the other side but really couldn't give you a reason. It is my hope and prayer that this nation steps back from the level of hate that we are at. We can agree to disagree with each other. We have to stop looking at the other side as bad people with bad ideas and start looking at them as people with bad ideas (or at least ideas we disagree with).

Anything else?

Blaze News has been covering the ever-growing subject of teachers reacting badly to Trump's presidential win:

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