‘Hero’ Teacher Makes Herself Into a Human Shield for Student Being Attacked by Bullies

A New Jersey teacher is being hailed a hero for stepping in when a student was being attacked. Teachers often do not get enough credit for being willing to put their bodies on the line for students. This teacher didn’t even hesitate before she got involved, because she knew that there was a kid in that moment who needed her.

There are so many special teachers out there who go above and beyond to ensure the safety of our kids, and it’s good to see that being acknowledged. And like a true hero, the teacher doesn’t seem to want the attention she deserves for her good deed.

More from CafeMom: Mom Allegedly Snuck into Middle School & Beat Up Teacher After Disagreement With Student

She stepped in when no one else would.

Cathy Hurley is a 56-year-old special education teacher in Bayonne, New Jersey. She put her body on the line when she spottedĀ a group of boys attacking another boy in the parking lot of William Shemin Midtown Community School.

There is video footage of Hurley stepping in and getting involved, which is making the rounds on social media.

The video is disturbing.

In the video, Hurley steps in as the other boys beat and stomp the boy. Her daughter, Frankie Sielski, told WABC that her mother had asked the teens if there would be a fight before it started. Sielski claims that her mother knew something was off, and seconds later the fight broke out.

“This woman, like, appearing from nowhere, right?” Sielski said of the clip. “She’s not part of the crowd. She appears from nowhere and you lose her. And then the next thing you see is her body on top of them. Like it just really like an angel moment.”

Hurley likely saved the young man's life.

“It’s not really until she kind of takes his head into her arms that there’s any type of reaction or stopping from the attack,” Sielski told CBS News New York.

Police said that at one point, the boy was unconscious. “The fact that this poor child was really brutally attacked just has her very upset,” said Sielski of the teacher.

More from CafeMom: Texas Principal Is Left Blind in One Eye After Vicious Attack by Middle School Student

The attackers have been arrested.

police car with lights
MattGush/iStock

Educarray McGhie, 18, along with four minor teens: one 15-year-old, two 16-year-olds, and a 17-year-old, have been charged with aggravated assault, endangering an injured victim, and riot in the incident, Bayonne Detective Sgt. William Dundas told NJ.com.

Police have not named the victim. He was taken to the hospital after the incident, and released a short time later.

Hurley is being praised for her actions.

In a statement shared by WABC, Bayonne School District Superintendent John Niesz said, “I can tell you this, that teacher embodies what each and everyone who works and lives in Bayonne is all about.”

But according to her daughter, this is just who Cathy Hurley is. “She was raised that way,” Sielski told WABC. “I was raised that way to stick up for the underdog and I know that her responding was an instinct.”

Sielski told CBS News New York that her mother returned to work the next day. She also shared that her mother was lying low despite all the attention, because she just did what she believes in right.