CHESAPEAKE, Va. — A photographer who reportedly made inappropriate comments to a student while taking school pictures at E.W. Chittum Elementary School in Chesapeake last week has lost her job, a spokeswoman for the company has confirmed to 13News Now.
“At Lifetouch, our number one priority is the safety of every student we photograph,” said Sondra Harding, senior director of strategic communications for Shutterfly, which owns Lifetouch. “We have numerous policies and procedures in place to ensure that safety, including training and background checks on all of our photographers. We take any allegation about a photographer very seriously and have conducted a thorough investigation. The photographer in question is no longer employed with the company.”
The photographer was escorted from campus last week after a student reported the comments. Principal Bridget Outlaw said “We are thankful that our message of ‘see something, say something’ was effectively used in this situation.”
Outlaw added any concerns in general can be submitted through the school's Let’s Talk platform or Report Line, or addressed directly with school administration.
