Sumter School District Reviews Cafeteria-Cleaning Activities for Students With Disabilities
Parents in Sumter, South Carolina, report that their son, a student with autism, and other students with disabilities were allegedly required to clean the Lakewood High School cafeteria. The school district stated these activities are part of employability and life…
Champaign Urbana & Springfield Decatur, IL, October 19, 2026 —
Parents in Sumter, South Carolina, say their son, a student with autism, and other students with disabilities were required to clean the cafeteria at Lakewood High School. The school district said the activities are part of employability and life skills instruction intended to promote independence, and that the practices are under review.
The reports and the district’s explanation present differing perspectives on the cafeteria work: parents describe students being required to perform the task, while the district characterizes the activities as instruction. The available information does not specify what cleaning tasks students performed, how often they took place, or how the assignments were made.
The district’s review is ongoing, according to the information provided. No findings or changes to the activities were reported. The name of the school district was not provided, and the parents’ names were not provided.
Further details are also unavailable about when the reported assignments occurred, how many students were involved, whether students or families were given a choice, or what the review will examine. The information provided does not include direct quotations from the parents or the district. It also does not describe the school’s policies or the specific instructional plans connected to the activities.
For now, the reported concern and the district’s stated educational rationale are the details available. The district has said the practices are under review, but no conclusion from that review has been reported.
Story summarized from the original created by Tanner Gilmartin, Gray News staff on www.wandtv.com, see more information here.
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