Charlotte schools chief speaks on student safety weeks after refusing to answer questions

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WBTV) - Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Superintendent Dr. Crystal Hill is addressing ongoing issues of student safety weeks after refusing to answer basic questions on the topic when pressed by WBTV.

Hill penned an op-ed in the Charlotte Observer on Wednesday, prompted by a rash of violence at CMS sporting events.

“My daughters attend Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools and as a parent, as their mother, not as the superintendent, I have a level of expectation that when they enter a learning environment and spend time with peers, they do so in a safe space,” Hill wrote.

The editorial comes weeks after Hill refused to say anything about student safety when asked on-camera ahead of a school board committee meeting.

“Should parents feel like Charlotte Mecklenburg schools cares about student safety?” a reporter asked.

Hill stared straight ahead and never answered the question.

Earlier this year, superintendent Hill walked out of an interview when pressed about the district’s handling of a five-year-old girl’s report of being sexually assaulted on a school bus.

The recent violence at sporting events comes after a years-long WBTV investigation uncovered the district’s failure to properly handle reported sexual violence, including three reported incidents in 2023 involving students riding a school bus.

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights has launched four investigations into the district over possible violations of a federal law known as Title IX.

More recently, WBTV has uncovered the case of a student who was dropped off the school bus bleeding from the mouth; the CMS bus driver handbook does not instruct driver’s to call for help or render aid if a student is injured on the bus.

As parent and community concerns mount about student safety, district leaders are pushing for voters to approve a $2 billion bond package.

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