Imagine walking down your street and seeing a news headline that would make you wonder if this could happen at our local school. It's happening just like that in Tennessee, where a teacher was accused of dragging a nonverbal 9-year-old student across the floor with such force it left a 'blood red mark,' according to police.

This isn't an isolated incident. Stories like these are more common than we’d like to think, each one chipping away at our confidence in how our children’s safety is handled when they're out of sight from home and parents.

Police say the teacher allegedly dragged the child after he refused to put on a coat that she wanted him to wear. The young student was autistic and non-verbal, making communication difficult even under normal circumstances.

The incident left me wondering how we got here as a society where such actions are taken against our children. It’s heartbreaking to think about the impact this could have had on his fragile emotional state.

What kind of world are we leaving for our children? Every day it feels like another layer is peeled back from the veneer of security and care that should be a given in schools today.

This teacher's alleged actions are just one example of why accountability needs to be stronger. The question remains, what can parents do when their child is in such an uncertain environment?

As a parent, I feel a deep sense of vulnerability knowing my child could walk into a situation like this every day without me there to protect them.

I find myself holding my breath, imagining that same scene happening near our local school. What if it was your child? Your grandchild?

Please share this with every parent you know, let’s start talking about what needs to change before something worse happens.