NY School Timeout Box Sparks Native American Trauma Fury

A small school district in upstate New York has found itself at the centre of a crisis after images of wooden 'timeout boxes' in classrooms circulated widely on social media, reopening deep-seated wounds within the Native American community it serves.

The Salmon River Central School District, where more than 60% of the 1,300 students are Native American, has taken swift action. Its superintendent has been reassigned to 'home duties' as a law firm investigates what officials are describing as a serious breach of trust. Additionally, a principal and the district's special education director have been placed on leave.

The controversy erupted when Chrissy Onientatahse Jacobs, a former school board member and parent within the district, posted photographs on Facebook showing a tall wooden box tucked into a classroom corner. Images of its interior revealed bare walls and a padded floor. Following public outcry, officials later confirmed that two additional boxes had been installed in other schools. All three have now been removed.

Why This Incident Cuts So Deep

For Native American families, this revelation is far more than a disciplinary tool. It stirs painful memories of the government-run boarding schools that forcibly removed thousands of Indigenous children from their families over more than 150 years.

A report issued by the US Interior Department in July 2024 identified nearly 19,000 children who attended 417 such institutions between 1819 and 1969. At least 973 children died and were buried at 74 sites, 21 of which remain unmarked. The federal government spent approximately $23 billion (£17.1 billion) on a system intended to erase tribal identities, languages, and spiritual practices.

Former President Joe Biden issued a formal apology for these abuses on 25 October 2024, at the Gila River Indian Community in Arizona. He described the boarding school system as 'one of the most horrific chapters in American history' and a 'sin on our soul.'

The Saint Regis Mohawk Tribal Council, which governs the reservation adjacent to the school district, issued a strongly worded statement demanding accountability for 'everyone involved in the decision to construct and install these inhumane devices.'

'Trust has been broken,' the council declared. 'Our children deserve better from those in charge of their care.'

Disputed Claims and Growing Accountability Concerns

Superintendent Stanley Harper maintained that the box depicted on social media 'had never been used with students' and that timeout is only permitted when children pose an immediate physical safety risk.

However, several parents challenged this assertion during public meetings. T.J. Hathaway, whose mostly nonverbal third-grade son was in the classroom where a box was installed, said his child communicated that he 'felt bad for one of his friends that had to go in there.'

Under New York law, seclusion is prohibited in public schools. According to a report by the New York Times, education officials have ordered the district to remove any remaining boxes and announced plans to conduct site visits. The district held classes remotely on Friday, 'out of an abundance of caution.'

A Pattern That Persists Nationwide

This incident underscores the ongoing use of restraint and seclusion practices in American schools—methods that critics have condemned for decades. Research consistently shows that children with disabilities and students of colour are disproportionately subjected to such measures.

School board president Jason Brockway offered an apology, acknowledging that for many community members, 'this incident has reopened historical wounds and trauma connected to the mistreatment of Native children.'

In a community where more than half the students carry the burden of generational trauma, the timeout boxes have become symbols of a broader institutional failure.

As for Mr Hathaway, he and his family are still deliberating whether to withdraw their son from the district entirely. His message to school leadership is blunt: 'We need new, fresh blood in our administration that understands that this is not OK.'