Photo by Shelley Hanson Marshall County Board of Education members listen to a technology report from Technology Director Carla Garrison on Tuesday.

GLEN DALE — Marshall County Board of Education members received an update Tuesday regarding the ongoing effort to monitor and improve special education across the school district.

This comes on the heels of the recent arrest of a McNinch Primary School teacher who allegedly strangled an autistic 6-year-old student in September. The teacher, Kiersten Nicole Moses, has since resigned.

The school’s former principal, Jane Duffy, and Marshall County Schools’ director of special programs, Erin Cuffaro, are also facing charges related to the case.

Haines said Duffy’s replacement, Jessica Robinette, is doing well in her new position. Duffy resigned Dec. 22. Cuffaro is suspended without pay.

“Ms. Robinette has jumped in with both feet at McNinch. She’s been doing an excellent job,” Haines said. “We wrapped up our second on-site visit with McNinch today to assist in supporting, right now, the multi-categorical classroom that focuses on behavior. We’re already seeing great gains – we have a new teacher in that room. We’re seeing so many additions and positive things.”

Haines noted that Tuesday was also the first day of an outside review of the district’s special education program.

“We have another day of that happening tomorrow from the company that we are contracting with to assist,” she added.

The company being used is Education System Solutions of St. Albans, West Virginia.

“Both of these supports will be ongoing. We’re looking forward to only becoming better to serve the students of Marshall County Schools,” she said.

Moses is facing two counts of felony battery and assault of a disabled child and felony child abuse.

Duffy is facing a misdemeanor count of failure to report child abuse or neglect.

Cuffaro is facing eight felony counts of gross neglect of a child creating a substantial risk of death or serious bodily injury, as well as misdemeanor counts including failure to report child abuse and obstruction of law enforcement.

All three women have pleaded not guilty to the charges against them and have future hearings scheduled in court.