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On March 5, 2026, the Office of Childhood (OOC) received a complaint alleging that while in the gymnasium lobby, Child A crawled under a table. Instead of talking to her or asking for help, Ella Rust grabbed her by the leg and pulled her from under the table and then grabbed her by the arm and drug her across the lobby with another friend. Compliance Inspector (CI) Heather Radney conducted an investigation of the allegation and found it to be substantiated based on the following information:
5 CSR 25-500.182(1)(C)3. - Only constructive, age-appropriate methods of discipline shall be used to help children develop self-control and assume responsibility for their own actions.
On March 12, 2026, Compliance Inspector (CI) Heather Radney conducted interviews with Director Erin Law and Caregivers Jolie Gritts and Bella Meyer. Erin stated that two teachers were struggling with their class and needed help, so Bella went to help. She stayed in the office and watched the cameras. Ella dragged a child by the arm and then let it go. Ella then pulled the child out from under a table by her leg, threw her leg down, grabbed the child's arm, and dragged her across the room toward the door. Ella was visibly frustrated dealing with the one child. She could tell Ella was frustrated by her body language and her face. She went in to talk to Ella about what had happened and even then, Ella was short with her. Child B was also dragged across the room by one arm. She believes that the actions were done in anger and were forceful; therefore, Ella was terminated. Bella stated that she went in to the class to help. She saw Ella drag Child B by the arm/wrist. Child B was not crying but was making sounds like he was unhappy. Ella looked mad and had an angry face. Ella told Child B he was going to be in trouble and be in time out. Ella told her Child A and Child B were not listening and were running off. Ella seemed to be dragging the children back to where they were supposed to be. Jolie stated that she saw Ella pull Child A out from under the table by her foot. Child A said "ow" and started crying when Ella pulled her over the bar that was on the floor under the table. Child A's butt and back would have been dragged over the metal bar. Child A cried a couple seconds before she got up and ran off again. She heard Ella say "come here" to Child B. She was taking them to time out. Ella seemed frustrated in the moment; she could tell by Ella's body language and tone of voice.
On March 12, 2026, CI Radney received and reviewed a video from 1st Kids. The video is dated March 4, 2026 and time stamped 4:02. Caregiver Ella pulls Child A out from under a table by her leg and Child B by his wrist. They are pulled approximately four feet. Ella drops Child A's leg and grabs Child A by the left wrist, while still holding Child B by his wrist. Ella turns and swings the children off the ground and around to face the other direction. Ella begins walking, dragging Child A and Child B by their wrists with their legs dragging behind them. She pulls them approximately 10 feet and then lifts them up by their wrists and appears to try to have them sit. Ella lets go of Child A's wrist, and Child A immediately gets up and runs away. Ella lets go and grabs Child B's wrist again and picks him up by the wrist. Ella drags him approximately five feet toward Child A and the door. The video ends before Ella is seen letting go of Child B's wrist.
On April 24, 2026, CI Radney conducted an interview with Caregiver Ella Rust. The kids kept sitting down and not lining up. She kept asking Child A to get out from under the table. She went to grab her arm but Child A moved, and she grabbed her leg by accident so she pulled her out by her leg. She grabbed Child A and Child B and dragged them closer to the line. She was a little frustrated that she didn't have help and that the children weren't listening. She would have done everything differently: she wouldn't have pulled Child A out or pulled the kids by their arms because she was frustrated. She kept on getting more frustrated because no one was coming to help and no one was listening.
Based on the information provided, it appears that Ella was not using constructive, age-appropriate methods of discipline when she drug Child A out from under a table by her leg and then dragged Child A and Child B across the room by their arms toward the door where she told Child B he was going to be in trouble and be in time out. Staff reported Ella appeared frustrated and Ella reported she was frustrated because the children were not listening.
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