With all due respect, this comment by the DOE makes them look silly.  "And he made his complaint about the iced coffee without understanding the student’s special education plan or collaborating with other staff, the DOE said".  As a special educator, if I saw abuse, I would not "collaborate" with my staff to decide if they thought it was abuse.  If I felt it was abuse, I must report it.  And the fact that he did not "understand the students SpEd plan", I can pretty much guarantee that no student's education plan includes pouring anything over their head  I also believe a group of 4-5 adults would cover for each other, especially if they have been working together for awhile and have become friends.  So, "Naive for us to not see this for what it is".  Quite the opposite.  In my opinion, this is the DOE saying 'nothing to see here.....move along".