Kindergarten teacher who identified as ‘trans wolf,’ wore collar and tail, fired after parents raise alarm

A North Carolina kindergarten substitute teacher who allegedly identified as a “trans wolf” and wore a collar and tail in class has been fired after parents raised concerns. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed the dismissal following complaints from military families.

Hegseth wrote on X that the teacher, whom he referred to as “the ‘Wolf,’” had been dismissed weeks earlier. His post followed mounting scrutiny from parents whose children attended Mildred B. Poole Elementary School at Fort Bragg.

Military families began voicing concerns in early 2025 about the teacher’s behavior around young students, according to TNND.

Parents said the substitute teacher, who worked with kindergarten and pre-K classes, sometimes wore women’s clothing along with a dog collar and an animal tail while at school.

Several families contacted the legal advocacy group Liberty Counsel, which later sent a formal complaint to the Department of Defense Education Activity, which oversees the school system serving military bases.

The group argued that administrators had failed to respond adequately to repeated parental complaints.

In its letter, Liberty Counsel wrote that the teacher engaged in “disturbing behavior” in the classroom and that parents had first raised concerns in early 2025 and again in January. The group urged school officials to remove the educator from contact with children pending an investigation.

Parents told Liberty Counsel that the teacher sometimes asked students to howl like wolves and told the children that he turned into a wolf at night, according to The College Fix.

One parent reported that her daughter came home frightened and said, “Mommy, I’m scared he’s going to come eat me,” after hearing the teacher make such claims.

Another parent said their child reported that the teacher told students he was “actually a woman” who “likes boys.” Families also alleged the teacher used various alternate names in the classroom, including “Roxxanne Wildheart,” “Captain Roxxie” and “Lilith Deathhowl.”

Liberty Counsel’s complaint included detailed references to the teacher’s public social media activity. The group pointed to multiple posts and pieces of artwork depicting violent scenarios, graphic imagery and sexually suggestive themes associated with several of the persona names that parents said the educator used in the classroom.

The organization cited examples it said showed the teacher’s online characters portrayed in scenes involving weapons, blood or coercive themes, along with other inappropriate material for someone working with young children.

Liberty Counsel further stated that school officials initially told parents they couldn't intervene because the school lacked a formal dress code and because the teacher identified as transgender. The group argued in its complaint that the situation could amount to sexual harassment under Title IX.

The DoDEA later informed Liberty Counsel that the school system had “severed the employment relationship” with the individual referenced in the complaint. The agency also said it was coordinating with appropriate offices to review the matter.

It remains unclear whether the teacher had previously been suspended before the termination.

Recent debates about classroom content and school oversight have contributed to heightened scrutiny of educators’ conduct in early childhood settings. Federal education data show that homeschooling in the U.S. has grown in recent years, with estimates placing the number of homeschooled children above 3.7 million as of 2025, according to Newsbreak.