For one Cape Coral father, the idea that a trusted teacher could be the person who got his daughter to start vaping is almost too hard to believe, but that’s exactly what he claims happened.
“It’s one of the craziest situations I think I’ve ever found myself in as a parent,” said father Joseph Carroll, who says he is trying to understand why a teacher gave his high-school daughter a vape.
“Miss Acuna gave me the vape,” said Lundynne Carroll, who confirmed the accusation.
The teacher in question, Nuria Acuna, formerly of Island Coast High School, faces termination. The Lee County School District removed Acuna from the classroom in February after school administrators reported she showed up to work under the influence and later tested positive for cocaine.
Joseph and Lundynne Carroll claim Acuna introduced a minor to vapes.
“I asked her if she had some Tylenol, and we went into the elevator to go up to her classroom,” said Lundynne. “She proceeded to take out her vape, and then, like, shoved it in my face almost. So, that’s kind of the first time I ever started smoking.”
“She’s the original influence of these vapes on my kid, and that’s where it all started,” said Joseph. “It’s just absolutely ridiculous that it’s a teacher that I have to worry about that with, you know, somebody that I trust to teach my kids and send them home, not being an influence for nicotine and things like that.”
The Carroll family says they reported their concerns about Acuna’s alleged behavior to Island Coast administrators in December, shortly after their daughter was suspended for vaping at school. Lee District administrators say that the complaint almost a year ago was a contributing factor to Acuna being put under “close observation.”
A spokesperson for the school district said, “allegation was recorded by the principal and forwarded to Professional Standards,” but admin “could not substantiate the allegation.”
“The first emotion for me was shock,” said Joseph. “Obviously, that’s not what I thought I was going to hear from the school. And then it started to turn into, you know, a little bit of anger, like, not a revenge type of person, but like, I wanted to see something happen.”
Despite numerous attempts to contact Acuna for a comment, she texted back “no comment.”
“These children are our future, and if it’s okay to let these teachers come in and influence them in such negative ways, then something really needs to be looked at,” said Joseph. “Either positions need to be changed or the system needs to be changed. Get it together.”
Lundynne added, “I believe she should be terminated and not allowed back. Because if you’re giving students vapes and with the whole cocaine incident, just imagine what else she could be doing.”
Acuna is currently suspended without pay and will face a termination hearing to determine her future with the district. Her hearing is scheduled for Tuesday.