Auckland preschool teachers Michelle Choi and Rochelle Gray censured after child left in locked van

Kākāpō Creek Children’s Garden in Auckland often takes its students on excursions to a local farm-forest. Photo / Google Maps

A screaming child was found locked in a preschool van 80 minutes after the class had returned from a trip.

Now, teachers Mee Sung (Michelle) Choi and Rochelle Gray have been found guilty of serious misconduct by the Teachers’ Disciplinary Tribunal for a miscommunication that could have turned fatal.

The pair were working at Kākāpō Creek Children’s Garden in Auckland on December 1, 2022, when they took nine children in a van to a local farm-forest.

They returned to the centre around 2.05pm, parking close to the door to unload bags and the children, the decision said.

A compulsory roll check was not done on arrival, and Gray took two children inside, leaving Choi with the van and the remaining children.

This included a child in the front passenger row and one in the back sleeping.

Gray returned to the van and took more children and bags inside the centre, then returned to let Choi take her lunch break.

The tribunal heard Choi referred to there being “sleepers” in the van and Gray recalled looking at the child in the front row and asking Choi, “Is that it?”

That a child was in the back seat was not “expressly communicated” by Choi, the decision said.

The pair did not clearly communicate with each other about the number of children sleeping in the van, and Gray did not see the child in the back.

She continued unpacking the van and took bags and equipment inside while monitoring the child in the front. Gray then took her inside when she woke up.

Gray again came out to the van, this time with her daughter, and moved the van forward, approximately 20m, into its normal parking space.

At 2.39pm, Gray locked the van and went back into the centre, leaving the child in the back seat unattended.

She did not do a final check of the van to ensure that no children were still inside.

Gray then left for the day. Choi remained at work and neither she nor the two other staff on duty noticed that the child was missing.

The child was found at 3.28pm when a parent arriving at the centre to collect their own child saw movement in the van and the child inside screaming.

After several minutes, the child was taken inside until their parent arrived.

Both teachers apologised to the parents and the centre conducted a disciplinary process which included Gray and Choi participating in further professional development. A review of the centre’s trip and vehicle-related policies also took place.

The tribunal found both Gray and Choi guilty of serious misconduct but was also satisfied that the “incident represents a one-off lapse”. Both teachers were censured.

“Ms Gray and Ms Choi fully cooperated with the proceedings, showed significant remorse and have undertaken appropriate professional development since the incident,” tribunal deputy chair Catherine Garvey said.

Brianna McIlraith is a Queenstown-based reporter for Open Justice covering courts in the lower South Island. She has been a journalist since 2018 and has had a strong interest in business and financial journalism.