Upstate New York teachers put on leave after offensive texts

ROCHESTER, N.Y. (AP) — Several teachers in upstate New York have been put on leave after exchanging text messages that made racist and other demeaning references to students. Rochester schools Superintendent Lesli Myers-Small said in a statement Friday that she is horrified by the language used to describe children at Enrico Fermi School 17. Students discovered one obscene text expressing a wish that one girl would beat another up. The Rochester Democrat and Chronicle reported that another obscene text suggested an automated call insulting children and their parents. The school has a large percentage of Black and Hispanic students in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade.