Woman who was Terminated from Job at Duval Early Learning Academy After Reportedly Injuring Four-Year-Old Files Expungement Petition

Former Alachua County Public Schools (ACPS) employee Tamera Williams Calhoun, 47, who had her child abuse case dropped after reportedly injuring a four-year-old while working at Duval Early Learning Academy, recently filed a petition to expunge the case from public record.

Gainesville Police Department officers arrested Calhoun on September 6, 2024. The arrest report reads as follows:

“On August 13, 2024… [Calhoun] was teaching the victim in a prekindergarten class. An adult (Wit 1) was also in the classroom as the teaching assistant or paraprofessional assigned to [Calhoun]. Wit 1 only knew [Calhoun] for approximately one working day prior to [the incident].

August 13, 2024 was the second day of the new school year. The [four-year-old] victim had never attended a daycare or been in a classroom setting. Additionally, the victim is diagnosed with autism and English is his second language…

As described by Wit 1, the class of approximately 12 Pre-K students [were] participating in ‘Pokemon Yoga.’ [Calhoun] had turned the computer monitor on her desk around and played the YouTube video on that due to a malfunctioning TV in the classroom… 

Wit 1 described that although she did not observe as the victim did so, she soon learned that the victim had crawled under a student table during the Pokemon Yoga activity… Wit 1 was seated in the pre-K student chair at the very table that the student had crawled beneath, however, her attention was focused on the group in front of her and not specifically on the victim. Regardless, the victim’s presence under the table was not such that Wit 1’s attention was turned to the victim. Wit 1 described that the victim was quiet and not creating any disturbance for the class or creating any safety concern while under the table. 

Wit 1 described hearing a ‘blood-curdling scream’ that caused her to turn toward the scream and observe as [Calhoun] aggressively ripped the victim out from under the table by nothing other than [their] left ear and then forcing him into a chair at the table. Wit 1 stated that the victim continued to scream and cry for several minutes all while holding his injured ear with his hand. 

Wit 1 recalled that even after the victim stopped crying, when she interacted with him he was visibly upset, holding his ear and pointing to [Calhoun]. Wit 1 was greatly disturbed by [Calhoun]’s actions towards the victim and immediately took several pictures of [their] injury to his ear with her cell phone. After taking the photos… Wit 1 left the classroom and reported the incident to school administration. 

Wit 1 said that she observed [Calhoun] being ‘rough’ with students and grabbing them aggressively by the arms/wrists over the course of the two days. Wit 1 also saw [Calhoun] roughly grab the victim by the forearm the previous day; the first day of school.

After receiving a report by Wit 1, the school principal [Jesely Alvarez] (Wit 2) removed the victim from [Calhoun]’s classroom and took him to the school nurse asking her to look the victim over for any injuries, specifically to his head and face. [Alvarez] stated that when she asked the victim if he was ok, he responded by saying ‘play.’ [Alvarez] stated that this indicated to her that the victim was not afraid to return to his classroom with [Calhoun] and, accordingly, she sent him back to class. [Alvarez] observed an injury to the victim’s ear and determined it was ‘old’ and unrelated even though it was to the same ear that Wit 1 described [Calhoun] as having pulled. There was an apparently new bruise on the victim’s right arm. 

After [Alvarez] spoke to the victim… [she] questioned [Calhoun] about the incident… [Calhoun] denied having pulled the victim by his ear. Rather, [Calhoun] told [Alvarez] that the victim was screaming underneath the table so she pulled him out by his arm, not his ear, but that he may have bumped his ear on the table on the way up. [Calhoun] was counseled by [Alvarez] about pulling the victim by the arm and was allowed to remain and teach in the classroom. 

[Alvarez] reported the incident as told by Wit 1 to Human Resources and [the Department of Children and Families (DCF)]. The report by [Alvarez] adds that there was no injury to the victim in spite of the fact that there was an injury to the victim’s ear and a bruise to the victim’s arm. [Alvarez] was advised that the report would not be accepted by DCF based on the information provided” 

According to the DCF website, “Anyone reporting in good faith shall be immune from any civil or criminal liability. Any person who knowingly and willfully makes a false report or counsels another to make a false report is guilty of a felony of the third degree punishable by up to five years in prison.”

Alvarez was never charged with a criminal offense, court records show. 

The arrest report continues:

“[Alvarez] met with the mother of the victim after school. The meeting was not planned or scheduled, but rather, described as coincidental. [Alvarez] told the victim’s mother that there was an incident [that] involved the victim in the classroom that day. However, [Alvarez] only provided the victim’s mother with [Calhoun]’s account of the incident and failed to mention Wit 1’s report/statements. When [police] inquired as to why [Alvarez] failed to disclose to the victim’s mother what Wit 1 had observed, [Alvarez said] that she did not believe she had to tell the victim’s mother what Wit 1 reported because DCF did not accept the report. 

[Police] made contact with the involved parties the following day… and [Calhoun] was still in the classroom teaching. [Police] observed a bruise on the victim’s right forearm as well as a dark purple bruise on both the interior and exterior of [his] ear. The victim’s left ear also had a small scratch to the interior. The victim’s mother indicated that neither of those injuries were on the victim when [he] was dropped off to school the morning of [August 13, 2024]. 

[On August 15, 2024] the child was forensically interviewed and disclosed that [Calhoun] had both grabbed his arm, causing his arm to hurt, and also pulled his ear, causing his ear to hurt. The victim held his ear and twisted it to demonstrate what [Calhoun] did to his ear… The victim was also examined medically by the Child Protection Team (CPT) who observed red/purple small bruises on the victim’s right forearm, bruising on the interior and exterior of [his] ear, and a small healing scratch on the inside of his left ear. CPT had positive findings for physical abuse…”

Calhoun reportedly had “no rational basis or legitimate purpose to support physically removing the (~40 lbs) victim from under the table using only [their] ear.”

A parent whose child attended the school at the time, Angela Casteel, told GnvInfo that ACPS didn't notify her about this incident and that she found out from an Alachua Chronicle article.

An email to families and staff at Duval Early Learning Academy shows that Alvarez was "on leave" about a month after this incident. 

ACPS Public Information Officer Jackie Johnson told GnvInfo that Calhoun “was terminated” and advised that Alvarez "is currently an assistant principal at Parker Elementary School and is on the board agenda this evening with several other assistant principals for transfers to other schools, which is typical for this time of year.”

On October 13, 2024, prosecutors dropped Calhoun’s case. GnvInfo has submitted a records request for the official reason for the disposition.

On April 13, 2026, criminal defense attorney Eric Atria filed a petition on Calhoun’s behalf to expunge her child abuse case from her record. 

According to court records, the victim wishes to give an impact statement and there will be a hearing pursuant to Florida law. 

Calhoun worked for ACPS despite her prior arrests. Court records show that in 2003 she completed a deferred prosecution agreement for a grand theft case. In 2007, she was granted withheld adjudications on drug and larceny charges.

Calhoun’s case isn't the first time there's been allegations of child abuse at Duval Early Learning Academy. Renee Guertin resigned from her position at the school in 2019 after a district investigation found she violated school safety policies.

The Gainesville Sun reported, “Surveillance video and police reports show that Renee Guertin grabbed the boy from behind and dropped him on a cafeteria bench. She then reportedly hit the child five times and dragged him to a door by his right arm where he was handed to other staff members. Around 200 other students were in the cafeteria at the time.” 

Guertin was charged with child abuse but prosecutors dropped the case prior to any arrest.