*UPDATES*

DCFS back in Quincy to interview Denman students, investigation into spankings/tapings reopening

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Quincy Superintendent Pettit, Denman PE teachers suspended with pay during state investigations

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Our community is grateful the students who have already been mechanically restrained and inappropriately touched without consent will not continue to be left in the care of the people who are known to have abused them (at least for now?).

But let us be clear: It remains hard to trust the integrity of QPS's intentions to act with transparency moving forward, as they see fit to utilize Ryan Whicker as an interim superintendent when he most certainly has been aware of the problems and situations at Denman - probably just about as long as his wife, Amber Whicker. It would be foolish to believe this husband and wife do not communicate about their work lives to each other. The idea that Ryan did not have information about the situation that as a state-mandated reporter he should have been ethically compelled to report does not sound like the truth. 

In a post-meeting interview on Friday, the question was asked whether or not Ryan Whicker was involved with the all-internally-performed "investigation" QPS conducted in June 2025; as he has been listed as the head officer of the the complaint process for QPS, there was a reasonable basis to infer he may have been involved. The answer QPS provided was that no, he was not involved with that investigation.

And while on the surface, that may reflect to the public as though their investigation was performed scrupulously, the part that didn't get shared was who was integral to those student, parent, and teacher interviews. From what we have heard from multiple families, a notable amount of the "investigation" was performed by Amber Whicker. If QPS chose to not involve Ryan in the interviews because they "recognized the conflict of interest," how is it that they did not recognize the conflict of interest of utilizing a staff member who has allegedly been directly involved in not documenting RTO events, not communicating with parents, not reporting situations parents and teachers were communicating to her, and allowing the abusive environment to continue through inaction, silence, and dismissal........... ?

To avoid even the appearance of impropriety and foster trust that we didn't just jump out of a pan to land in a fire, it seems like it would be most ethically sound for Ryan Whicker to recuse himself from acting as interim superintendent, at least during this time when his wife is implicated in open investigations being performed by (at least) two State agencies. 

We're not quite sure why QPS would have made that decision in the first place, honestly. 

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If your child was involved with the mechanical restraints (flooring tape obstructing an airway) or inappropriate touching (spanking by hand or object controlled by hand) - please fill out and send in this State RTO Complaint Form. 

Also, please review the Physical Restraint, Time Out, and Isolated Time Out Bill of Rights , which should have been provided to parents of students involved with the mechanical restraint incident known to have occurred in November 2024 (and also should have been offered again during the "investigation"). 

It is unfortunate that to date, we are not aware of QPS openly encouraging anyone with information to come forward, to make sure investigators are able to make determination based on the most complete picture possible. 

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Last note for now: We're aware not everyone in this community appreciates our commitment to making sure children are as safe and respected as possible. We don't agree with anyone who believes in hindering the truth in any capacity, but we're aware of how many feathers are getting ruffled. 

WE STRONGLY SUPPORT THE GOOD AND HONEST TEACHERS AND STAFF OF QUINCY PUBLIC SCHOOLS. There is a difference between "making mistakes," apologizing, and moving on -- and spitefully continuing a sustained pattern of recklessly negligent abuse. Right? And really, we fully believe the type of educators who can be trusted with our children understand the difference. (If you don't, please consider changing your mind or discontinuing working around children.) We love, honor, and endlessly respect the love, care, dedication, and hard work of good educators and staff - and overwhelmingly, that describes MOST of QPS employees. 

And we can hear that even good educators sometimes slip into becoming too jaded, too emotionally tired, too whatever, to recognize how far from the narrow path they truly have strayed. But it is never going to be fair for an adult who needs to reassess their own condition to treat children disrespectfully as a misguided outlet for their own issues. 

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We're thankful to DCFS and ISBE for opening their investigations - we hope that they are provided the information needed to make accurate conclusions regarding everyone who has been involved. We hope students feel safe and happy at school, and that moving forward, we are able to make productive and meaningful strides towards fostering open and honest dialogue between families and schools.

THANK YOU (yes. you.)

Thank you for hearing the small voices and the scared families. Thank you for hearing and believing survivors. There is so much hurt in the world, it really can become difficult to continue listening - but truly caring about each other is the absolute most important thing anyone could ever teach or learn.

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We'll keep you posted.

#QuincyUntaped
- The People