A student was charged after reportedly hitting a teacher in the head with a basketball at a Zelienople school.

Tyler J. McCleery, 18, of New Galilee, was charged with felony aggravated assault following a Feb. 20 incident.

Police said a teacher at St. Stephens Academy came to the station May 19 to report the incident.

The teacher said she was leaving the gymnasium Feb. 20 where McCleery was playing with a basketball nearby. After the teacher told McCleery to stop, police said he intentionally bounced the basketball off her head.

The teacher reprimanded McCleery and told him she has a condition where she cannot be hit in the head.

Police said a few weeks later, the teacher began experiencing vision problems consistent with symptoms of shunt failure. The symptoms worsened and became more frequent until she visited Allegheny General Hospital on April 21.

Police said doctors confirmed the shunt was not working properly and needed to be surgically replaced. A doctor said the valve of the shunt was cracked due to the incident.

McCleery’s preliminary hearing before District Judge Amy Marcinkiewicz is pending.