photo by: Stephanie Elverd

Marshall County Board of Education members from left, Lori Kestner, Christie Robison, John Miller and Duane Miller vote to suspend without pay two administrative employees following charges filed against McNinch Primary School Principal Jane Duffy and Marshall County Schools Special Programs Director Erin Cuffaro. Both administrators have pleaded not guilty to charges connected to the alleged strangling of a 6-year-old non-verbal autistic student by McNinch special education teacher Kiersten Moses.

GLEN DALE — The Marshall County Board of Education met Tuesday at John Marshall High School Commons, where they approved suspensions without pay for two administrators tied to an ongoing criminal investigation.

The names of the suspended employees were not disclosed, and no discussion was held before or after the vote.

The decision followed a recommendation from Marshall County Schools Superintendent Shelby Haines, who suggested suspending the two administrators. The suspensions, effective Dec. 4, follow charges filed against McNinch Primary School Principal Jane Duffy and Marshall County Schools Special Programs Director Erin Cuffaro.

Both administrators have pleaded not guilty to charges connected to the alleged strangling of a 6-year-old non-verbal autistic student by McNinch special education teacher Kiersten Moses.

Moses is no longer employed by the district.

Cuffaro faces eight felony counts of gross neglect of a child creating a substantial risk of death or serious injury, as well as misdemeanor counts of failure to report child abuse or neglect, obstruction of law enforcement, and providing false information. Duffy faces a misdemeanor charge for failure to report child abuse or neglect.

Criminal complaints state that neither administrator reported the incident to the Child Abuse Hotline. Investigators allege that Duffy showed a state trooper a text from Cuffaro advising her to “watch putting hands on children,” rather than issuing an official reprimand. Cuffaro initially denied sending the text but later admitted to doing so after deleting the messages.

Moses is charged with felony strangulation, two counts of battery and assault of a disabled child, and felony child abuse.

Both Duffy and Cuffaro had not worked since the investigation began.

The suspensions were not mentioned in Tuesday’s meeting when board members and Haines delivered reports at the end of Tuesday’s meeting which ended with BOE President John Miller thanking the administration and board for making decisions in the best interest of Marshall County Schools.

“Sometimes you have to get over bumps in the road to get to the smoother side,” Miller said.