A typical yellow school bus in New York City in Midtown Manhattan. (LeoPatrizi / Getty Images)
By Samuel Short May 14, 2026 at 11:22am
Homeschooling only looks more appealing as the education system continues to leave children with some of the worst excuses for teachers.
One of those is Ibijoke Idowu, who teaches special education at Rising Star Elementary in South Beacon Hill for Seattle Public Schools in Washington state.
In December 2025, Idowu was placed on leave following allegations that she abused an autistic child in her classroom. A complaint was filed with the district after the third-grader’s parents saw bruises the size of an adult’s fingertips in October and December.
The child’s parents also alleged his therapist witnessed Idowu throw a marker at him, hitting him in the face.
Since those incidents, The Seattle Times reported that according to his father, the child has been emotionally distressed, not sleeping well, and has been avoiding school.
The Teacher Accountability System summarized the allegations as follows:
“Alleged physical abuse of a third-grade student with autism, including leaving fingertip-sized bruises and throwing a marker at the student’s head, causing injury to face and glasses. Additional allegations include grabbing students by the arm, causing pain.”
The organization puts the case severity as high, and the Seattle Police have been notified with the investigation ongoing.
If those claims weren’t bad enough, Idowu is also a leftist, having previously worked as an organizer for Black Lives Matter.
Apparently, none of this has kept her from holding office, as she’s been elected president of the Seattle Teachers Union ,with the New York Post reporting that the election results were certified Friday.
The criteria to run for office includes paying union dues and being employed by the school system.
Given that Idowu is on leave but still employed, she was an eligible candidate, but who in their right mind would vote for this woman?
From a practical perspective, she is relatively inexperienced.
Her teaching career began in 2021, but she is also a special education teacher. Why would her fellow teachers — she now represents 6,000 SPS employees — put her in this job?
Per the New York Post, as the race last week was winding down, Idowu commented on how she’d like to be seen as a candidate.
“I am not afraid to be a line stepper when it’s necessary and when it protects others,” she said.
“You can’t be afraid, and the thing is, sometimes you even have to be the bad guy. You have to ruffle feathers. But that is a part of, like, leadership, and sometimes you have to advocate for this group, and it bothers this group. But you know what? That’s for this group to deal with. And you figure out why the advocacy for this group is bothering you, because that’s something you have to deal with. That’s not for me to deal with.”
Her dystopian collectivism in handling individuals on a group basis is a topic of discussion in itself, but the comments about being “a line stepper” or “the bad guy” lack self-awareness. She should have given pause in consideration of the accusations, but her rebuttal now would likely be that those statements won her the race.
Idowu’s story is another advertisement for homeschooling.
You can teach your children, or you can leave them with allegedly abusive left-wing ideologues whose colleagues are too incompetent to keep her away from office.
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Sam Short is an Assistant Professor of History with Motlow State Community College in Smyrna, Tennessee. He holds a BA in History from Middle Tennessee State University and an MA in History from University College London. The views expressed in his articles are his own and do not reflect the views or opinions of Motlow State Community College.
