Woodbury HS substitute teacher who re-enacted George Floyd murder on leave from job as police officer

A substitute teacher is banned from South Washington County Schools and on administrative leave by the Wisconsin police department where he works after he allegedly staged re-enactments of George Floyd’s murder during classes at Woodbury High School.

In addition, the teacher mimicked holding a gun and pointing it at students, stated police brutality is not real, told sexist jokes and engaged in “inappropriate and racially harmful behavior” during English classes for sophomores and seniors, according to a letter high school Principal Sarah Sorenson-Wagner sent to parents Tuesday.

City officials in Prescott, Wis., identified the teacher as Steven Dwight Williams, 48, who has been in law enforcement for many years in his native Wisconsin and Montana.

“The city of Prescott and the Prescott Police Department find the current allegations, if true, made against Mr. Williams to be very disturbing, reprehensible, and we in no way condone his actions,” the city said in a statement late Wednesday afternoon.

The statement added that Williams, who has been on the force for two years, is on administrative leave from the Police Department as the city conducts its own investigation.

On Wednesday afternoon, several voice messages were left with Williams seeking comment but were not returned.

Williams’ career in law enforcement includes two stints as undersheriff in Daniels County, according to the Daniels County Leader newspaper in the northeastern Montana city of Scobey.

The Leader also noted Williams was raised in Wisconsin Rapids, Wis., and earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin Eau Claire. Upon graduating, he worked for police departments in his home state in Wausau and at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater as well as for U.S. Customs and Border Protection on the Montana-Canada border.

Williams has also worked in private security in the Twin Cities and as an 8th-grade science teacher in Bullhead City, Ariz.

In March of this year, Williams was granted a three-year, short-term substitute teacher’s license for all grades, according to state records.

Following Williams’ conduct at Woodbury High School, a report has been filed with the Minnesota Department of Education. Williams is banned from all South Washington County Schools property, and the school is working with police to investigate the incident, Sorenson-Wagner wrote.

“I am devastated our students were harmed,” Sorenson-Wagner said in an interview. “People did not feel loved or safe in the classroom. This teacher failed.”

Students reported to Sorenson-Wagner that Williams wanted them to know about his life as a police officer. On Monday, according to the district, he put a student on the ground as part of a re-enactment of Minneapolis police actions that led to the murder of Floyd in May 2020. Derek Chauvin knelt on Floyd’s neck for more than 9 minutes, contributing to Floyd’s death. Chauvin and three other Minneapolis officers were convicted in connection with Floyd’s death.

Sorenson-Wagner said the school has notified Teachers on Call, the company that provides substitute teachers for South Washington County, to ensure Williams does not fill any future vacancies in the district.

A spokeswoman for Teachers on Call said Williams is no longer a company employee and that the company is “deeply concerned” about the reported incident.

“We recognize the significant public trust placed in us to ensure our substitute educators maintain a safe learning environment,” the spokeswoman said in a statement. “We have a zero-tolerance policy for any form of violent, aggressive, or harmful behavior.”

Williams reportedly twisted a student’s arm behind their back and showed pressure points on the chin and face. The teacher spoke in “disturbing detail” about bodies he had seen, shared explicit details about two sexual assault cases he investigated and repeatedly made racially harmful comments, according to the district.

Sorenson-Wagner said some students put on their headphones and earbuds to tune the teacher out. Others recorded the conversation with their cellphones even though the school has a no-phone policy. The students shared the recording with the principal. One student asked whether the class could talk about something else, the principal said.

“It was surreal. They could not believe what he was talking about,” Sorenson-Wagner said. “They knew it was wrong.”

Sorenson-Wagner went to Williams’ classroom after listening to 3 minutes of a recording shared by a student and immediately ushered him out of the building.

“I told him we needed to swap him out, to gather his things and follow me,” Sorenson-Wagner said. “The things he shared were so egregiously over the line of things we talk about in school.”

On Wednesday, Sorenson-Wagner said the students “are not well,” and it will take time to recover. Students, she said, took some comfort knowing that he will not be back.

Monday was Williams’ first day at the high school. He had filled in at Woodbury Middle School on Oct. 1, the only other time he had worked in South Washington County Schools, a district spokesperson confirmed.

He taught a total of 124 students as a substitute English teacher, a spokesperson confirmed on Thursday. That total included four different periods of English class, with two sections of sophomores and two of seniors.

A concerned parent whose son was in one of the classes led by Williams corroborated the district’s account of what happened. The teacher mimicked the maneuver police used on Floyd during fourth hour, after which students in the class reported Williams’ actions to school administration.

Teachers on Call said all its teachers undergo a “rigorous” screening process compliant with Minnesota Department of Education standards, and it includes screenings that go beyond state requirements. Teachers are subject to comprehensive background and fingerprint checks, which include searches of local, state and national criminal records.

Williams had passed all background screenings, the spokeswoman said.

Staff members will be available to talk with students when in-person classes resume Monday. Wednesday was a learn-at-home day for high school students, and the MEA fall break takes place Thursday and Friday. The district also will conduct information sessions for parents on Wednesday afternoon and Thursday and Friday mornings.

Woodbury police said it is working closely with the district to look into the allegations against Williams, said Woodbury Police Chief Jason Posel. No police report had been filed as of Wednesday morning.

“We are disturbed by the preliminary information of what occurred,” Posel said. “The safety of the students, teachers, staff and our community is our top priority. We will investigate this incident to the fullest extent, while showing compassion to the students impacted.”