PITTSFIELD — A Herberg Middle School teacher has been placed on paid leave amid allegations that she repeated racial and homophobic slurs in her classroom while recounting a student’s remarks.

The allegations — now circulating widely in a public social media post by Brett Random, executive director of Berkshire County Head Start — indicate the teacher was describing a classroom incident when she used the slurs.

Random, a parent of a student in the class, alleges that the math teacher “used extremely offensive language including both a racial slur (N-word) and a homophobic slur (F-word) and then reportedly tried to push other students to repeat those words later in the day when students were questioning her on her behavior."

Random identified the teacher as Rebecca Nitsche.

Reached by phone Monday night, Nitsche denied asking students to repeat the words. She told The Eagle, "All I can tell you is it's not how it appears."

Nitsche, who joined the staff at Herberg in September, said she repeated the words a student used while reporting the incident to another teacher, saying officials needed to know what happened.

Interim Superintendent Latifah Phillips told The Eagle the incident remains under investigation and declined to speak to the specific allegations. She did not confirm the teacher's identity to The Eagle, explaining it is a personnel matter. She did confirm the teacher was placed on leave, "which is standard procedure when a matter such as this is under review."

In a follow-up Facebook post, Random thanked Phillips and School Committee members Sarah Muil and Ciara Batory for their prompt response to her concerns, adding that she emailed Phillips and the entire School Committee.

Random also said Herberg Principal Mike Taber and Assistant Principal Martha Clark communicated promptly and were “very attentive to the situation.” Taber did not return a message seeking comment on Monday.

But Random, who has a masters in social work, also said the incident "should be used to take a hard look at how we’re supporting responsive teaching, anti-racism, respect and creating truly inclusive classroom environments.”

“As a Black student, my daughter hasn’t always felt fully seen or connected in her school community and now she feels like she needs to be protected from it,” Random said. “That needs to change, not just for her, but for every student who deserves to feel safe, valued and respected.”

Phillips was clear on the district's expectations: "Derogatory language or discriminatory language of any kind has no place in our schools." And any staff directly speaking to students using derogatory language is "completely unacceptable," she added.

According to Random, her daughter told her the incident took place when Nitsche was attempting to call for assistance for a student who had used racial and homophobic slurs.

“In explaining to the teacher who came for assistance, [the teacher] repeated words that she believed another student said in front of her class. In that explanation she said aloud the word [n-----] and [f-----]," Random said in an email. "When approached by a student about why she would say those words in front of the class, the teacher responded by asking the student to repeat the words. [The teacher] then said, 'I know what I said.'"

“I was just like shocked at first,” Random's daughter, Herberg eighth-grader Imari Westbrook, said. “I didn’t think I heard her correctly, but I did.”

Reached Monday night, Nitsche said, "There was an incident that I witnessed that I had to give details regarding. I had to report to the principal."

Nitsche denied asking students to repeat the words. "Nope, that never happened," she said.

According to the the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, Nitsche was granted a provisional license to teach Grade 5-8 math on Sept. 3, 2025, the day after she was hired.

The personnel report approved by the Pittsfield School Committee on Sept. 17 of last year shows Nitsche worked at Hoosac Valley Middle/High School from 2011-25 and at St. Stanislaus Kostka School in Adams from 2004-09. She earned a masters in education from MCLA in 2014. Hoosac Valley Superintendent Aaron Dean said Nitsche worked at the middle and high school as a paraprofessional.

Westbrook, who has set her sights on playing basketball at Pittsfield High School next year, said school is “OK,” but not her favorite thing. “I don’t necessarily like it but sometimes I don’t mind it," she said.

Westbrook said she has heard classmates use the N-word. She said sometimes, other students or a teacher will respond and remind the speaker that the word is offensive.

Asked what adults need to know about what happened, Westbrook said: “I want them to know it’s not OK for a teacher to say that and use that language. That’s what hurts.”

In a prepared statement relayed by Director of Administrative Services and Public Information Officer Catherine VanBramer, Mayor Peter Marchetti said he “is aware of the situation and takes these allegations very seriously.”

“This incident is still under investigation and we need to make sure there is due diligence in the situation. At this time we cannot confirm any actions related to firing of any personnel nor do we have additional information to share,” VanBramer said on Marchetti’s behalf. “This is still an active matter."

Marchetti is chair of the School Committee. As mayor, he is an ex-officio member of the Committee.

In her post, Random also addressed the lack of diversity among city school teachers and staff.

According to 2024-25 school year data from the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education presented at a School Committee meeting earlier this year, 90.8 percent of Pittsfield's school staff identifies as white. Among city students, 50.7 percent are white, 23.1 percent are Hispanic, 13.3 percent are African-American and 11.1 percent are multiracial non-Hispanic.

The percentage of white teachers has remained unchanged in the past 10 years while the student body has grown more diverse, according to the data.

Phillips said the district has struggled to hire and retain teachers — it hired 101 staff members, including 61 teachers, last summer to fill vacancies. But she said a grant awarded by the state education department is helping "support our diversifying the workforce efforts."

In an interview last week, Phillips said the grant is paying for consultants who are helping the district stretch beyond its traditional workforce recruiting avenues.

Random said she hopes bringing the incident to light will lead to other families of color in Pittsfield speaking up when something isn't right.

"We have to think about how to make that happen differently," she said. "There are parents who don't know how to effectively engage with the system. When things don't get done they give up because it's business as usual."

Phillips said any family member with a concern about how their children are being treated should reach out to their building principal.

"That matters and it will be taken seriously," she said.