SAN ANTONIO – For the first time since a Northside ISD educator died after being injured by a student, the district’s superintendent is speaking publicly — as the teacher’s widow says she is still waiting for answers.
Alfred “Mr. Fred” Jimenez, an instructional assistant at Brandeis High School, died in February 2024 after a student with intellectual disabilities pushed him, causing a fatal head injury.
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Two years later, his wife says she still does not know exactly what happened.
“I have no closure,” Margo Jimenez said. “I still don’t know what actually happened.”
KSAT Investigates has been asking to speak with Northside ISD leadership about Jimenez’s death and teacher safety since 2024.
Superintendent Dr. John Craft told KSAT he was unaware of earlier interview requests.
“I’m going to blame that purely on our communications department,” he said. “I was never provided the formal invitation.”
For Margo Jimenez, the delay is part of a larger frustration about the lack of information about what led up to her husband’s death, which she had told KSAT about in 2024.
“What has changed since then?” asked KSAT Investigates reporter Daniela Ibarra.
“For me, nothing has changed,” Margo Jimenez answered. “I have no closure. I still don’t know what actually happened.”
For the last two years, all the details she knew were from a one-page long San Antonio police report.
“Was there anybody in there with him? Why was he in there by himself? Where was everybody?” she wondered.
KSAT Investigates learned new details about the deadly incident from a Northside ISD police report. According to the report, Jimenez was in the school’s gym when he told a student to let go of another individual. The student complied, but then turned and pushed Jimenez, knocking him to the ground.
Officers later found him unconscious with blood near his head.
Margo Jimenez wants to see video leading up to the incident. KSAT Investigates requested the footage, but the district is fighting its release.
“We have to protect our teachers,” she said. “They’re the educators — they’re the ones helping us.”
Craft said no educator should face the risk of being injured on the job and pointed to changes the district has made since Jimenez’s death, including increased training and efforts to fill staffing shortages.
In the past three school years, data shows Northside ISD has logged more than 3,500 reports of staff injuries — more than any other district in Bexar County. While district leaders say those numbers are decreasing, educators and union leaders say the risks remain.
The Northside American Federation of Teachers called for more staffing, training, mental health support and stronger safety protocols shortly after Mr. Fred died.
“I’ve come to realize, we are not protected,” one educator said during a 2024 school board meeting.
Northside AFT president Melina Espiritu-Azocar said the district has taken some steps forward but argued the broader responsibility lies with the state.
“We put the blame directly on the state of Texas,” she said. “The governor has continued to underfund public education.”
“Do you feel like your hands are tied by the state?” asked Ibarra.
“To some degree,” Craft responded.
He also said Jimenez’s death has changed how the district approaches safety, emphasizing the need to listen more closely to educators.
But for Margo Jimenez, those improvements do not answer the questions she has been asking for two years — or ease her concern about what could happen next.
“This is happening every single day at school,” she said.
She believes what happened to her husband was preventable.
“It’s going to happen again,” she said. “And maybe this time, if it does, somebody will pay attention.”
Tell us your story
KSAT Investigates reporter Daniela Ibarra is not done investigating violence against teachers in the classroom, and she needs your help.
If you’ve experienced violence in the classroom or if you’re the parent of a student who has injured a teacher and want to share your story, we want to hear from you.
You can share your story and any photos or videos of the injuries or aftermath by filling out this form or by emailing Ibarra at dibarra@ksat.com.
Daniela is an IRE 2025 Chauncey Bailey Investigative Reporting Fellow. This story is part of her yearlong project focusing on teacher injuries by students.
Read more reporting on the KSAT Investigates page.