State officials in New York say the Salmon River district’s special education program confined young children with disabilities in wooden boxes. Parents weren’t notified. (Image credit: Used with permision)

Officials in the Salmon River Central School District in Fort Covington, New York, have acknowledged that wooden boxes were constructed and used to confine elementary school children, including Native children, with disabilities. The practice was ended in December 2025 after these images, confirmed as authentic by school officials, circulated on social media. In a new report, New York’s state has ordered sweeping reforms at the public school. Used with permision/Photos provided by Chrissy Onientatahse Jacobs hide caption Fort Covington, New York - Rumors spread on social media over the winter: School kids with disabilities in the Salmon River Central School District, including Akwesasne Mohawk children, were being confined by special education teachers in wooden boxes.

Sarah Konwahahawi Herne was devastated. ‘It was so unfathomable that our children were seeing these boxes and hearing children screaming in these boxes,’ said Herne, a parent and a member of the tribal community. ‘I cried, I threw up and I immediately grabbed my laptop and said, What are we going to do?’

What You Need to Know

  • Source: NPR
  • Published: May 14, 2026 at 21:16 UTC
  • Category: World
  • Topics: #npr · #usa · #world-news · #native · #state · #salmon-river

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Curated by GlobalBR News · May 14, 2026