Lakota principal accused of assault before

KANSAS — An incident last month is not the first time Lakota Elementary Principal Dana Ward has been accused of harming a student. In June 2013, during her time as assistant elementary principal at Napoleon Area City Schools, Ward received an administrator evaluation, which was obtained by the newspaper. Described in the personal characteristics portion of an evaluation was a physical interaction with a student. "During the first semester of this school year, I saw you lifting and pulling a kindergarten student by her arms through the hallway when she would not listen to your commands. You left red marks on her arms," the evaluation read. "You then raised your voice to her in the office and directed her to stop smiling after she had calmed down. This behavior created a potential volatile situation. This was an extremely poor choice that shows poor temperament and lack of common sense." Ward Ward wrote a rebuttal to her evaluation. "The student's teacher, called me and asked if I could talk with the student again because she was refusing to do the various requirements in the classroom," the rebuttal reads. "I went to Central and asked the student to talk with me. I gave her numerous options-not commands such as walking to the cafeteria, walking to get a drink and calling home to mom. We were in the hallway so I took her hand like we were going for a walk. She refused so I let go. I did not pull on her arm. I gave her a couple options again and she refused to do anything-including talk to me. I put my hands under her arms to see if she would walk. She lifted her feet off the ground as I took a few steps. I then let her go and she laid down on the ground. "To my knowledge there were no red marks left on this student. If so, I would like to know what part of the arm and I would also like to know if there were pictures taken. I did not raise my voice in the office and I do not recall telling the student to stop smiling. Since I do not remember what, if anything was said, then I am unable to refute any statement completely," Ward continued. "I called the parent as soon as I got back to my office. I told her what happened and I asked for her advice on how to handle the situation of the student refusing to do anything. She gave me ideas and we met numerous times after that with the parent, teacher, guidance counselor and school psychologist to better understand and better serve the student's needs. I also talked with (the superintendent) about the incident. I told him that it would never happen again with any student and it never has. I learned from this mistake." It is not clear what action was taken after the evaluation and rebuttal. In June 2023, a letter was sent to Ward by Napoleon's superintendent at the time, informing her that he was requesting her contract be suspended "due to the financial condition of the district" and that it had "nothing to do with job performance." The superintendent's request was pending approval by the school board, which did not seem to have happened based on records reviewed by the newspaper. Ward's time at Napoleon Schools ended in March 2015 when she received a letter from the superintendent that her contract was not renewed because of "the district's administration reorganization and consolidation of administrative functions" and not due to "performance issues." A search of court records did not indicate any charges against Ward regarding the allegation made in her evaluation. May 2025 incident Ward was charged with assault following a May 8 incident at Lakota in which she was accused of striking a student "in the facial area with the back of her hand," according to a police report. She has since pleaded not guilty to the charge. Ward is scheduled for a pretrial hearing at 9:15 a.m. on June 18 at Sandusky County Courthouse #2 in Woodville. Although the incident occurred on May 8, Ward was not put on paid administrative leave until May 23, according to a letter sent to her by Lakota Schools Superintendent Chad Coffman. "The reason for this action is due to charges of a misdemeanor of the first-degree assault," the letter reads. According to a report made by the school's resource officer, while reviewing footage of the incident, Coffman told the officer that he did not want to place Ward on leave. What the video shows The newspaper obtained redacted and trimmed footage of the May 8 incident that was taken on a Lakota Schools security camera. The footage can be viewed on The Courier's Facebook page. The one-minute and 16-second video has no audio. It begins with a woman, identified as Ward, entering the frame while holding onto the wrist of a child. The child is seen attempting to remove their wrist from Ward's grip when Ward hits the child in the face and pulls her hand closer to her body, maintaining her grip on the child's wrist. A screenshot from security footage at Lakota Local Schools depicts a woman identified as elementary principal Dana Ward gripping the wrist of a student. The child then continues to pull on the hand of their wrist that's in Ward's grip. Ward then strikes the child again. The force of the strike knocks the child's head and torso backward. Not the first time This incident is not the first time Lakota Schools have been in hot water recently. In November 2024, the grandmother of a former Lakota Schools student began circulating a petition calling for the removal of Coffman and Kevin Yeckley, athletic director. The petition came after an incident in January 2024 in which a student was "violently attacked at Lakota in the gym locker room," according to the petition. Kelly Stevens, the grandmother of the victim, created the petition due to the way Coffman and Yeckley allegedly handled the situation. Coffman Coffman was placed on leave twice while serving as principal in the Parma City School District and was the subject of two investigations, according to public records the A-T received. Parma officials, both times, were investigating allegations that Coffman did not follow protocols and procedures when complaints were made to him. Yeckley Yeckley was "investigated" by the Toledo Catholic Diocese for an "inappropriate relationship" between he and a student while he was providing auxiliary services to St. Joseph Central Catholic Schools in Fremont. The diocese report was forwarded to the Ohio Department of Education since Yeckley was a Fremont City Schools employee. Yeckley signed an agreement with the state board, which he later violated, stating "engaged in conduct unbecoming a licensed educator by failing to maintain appropriate student-teacher boundaries" and that he could only work within schools within the Toledo Diocese until 2012.