Teacher fired after she let bullied boy use bathroom connected to her office… because it was also linked to girls’ locker room

A teacher was fired after letting a bullied boy into her office to protect him when a parent complained that her office was connected to the girls’ locker room. 

Alyssa Plaza, a physical education teacher at Somerton High School in Arizona, lost her job in April 2025 after she let Alejandro Perez-Parra use a restroom attached to her office instead of the boys’ locker room, The Arizona Republic reported.

Perez-Parra, the only boy in Plaza’s cheer team, was being bullied and receiving death threats because of his sexual orientation.

He suffered severe mental health issues as a result, according to a settlement agreement eventually reached between Plaza and the State Board of Education.

After letting Perez-Parra change in the bathroom, a student’s father contacted the school in February 2025, the outlet reported. 

The parent said a boy on the cheerleading team had been allowed into the girls’ locker room, which is attached to Plaza’s office.

‘Upon investigation, this information was found to be inaccurate and incomplete,’ the settlement document read.

Perez-Parra was not let into the girls’ locker room, but rather the bathroom in her office. 

Plaza was placed on administrative leave in February 2025 after the parent raised their concerns and was ordered not to contact any students, The Arizona Republic reported. 

However, Plaza then messaged students on Instagram, according to the settlement document.

‘Obviously we were all investigated and some lies did come out from students and some students made it worse so today I had a meeting. The options I was given was to quit or get fired,’ she wrote in a group chat with her cheer students.

Plaza claims she gave her phone to the State Department of Education to prove she didn’t send the message and claims to not know who sent it.

Yuma Union High School District (YUHSD) spokesman Eric Patten declined to comment on the details of Plaza’s termination.

‘Superintendent [Tim] Brienza continues to fully support the decision of the YUHSD Governing Board to accept his recommendation of termination of Ms Plaza in April 2025,’ Patten said.

As part of the settlement, Plaza received a letter of censure for ‘unprofessional conduct’ and was required to take a professional development course in order to get her teaching credentials back. She no longer works at Somerton High School.

She described the ordeal as ‘pure torture’ but added that she did not regret her decision.

‘The thought that should be running through my head is like, “If I had an option to do it again, I would do it again,”‘ she said. 

According to an Instagram post, Plaza previously worked at Yuma County Juvenile Justice Center.

‘From Ms Plaza to Officer Plaza. Thanks to my family and especially to my mama for telling me over and over again to do it. Thanks to everyone there who’s helped me,’ she wrote in the post.

The Daily Mail has contacted Plaza and YUHSD for comment.