Woodlawn-area preschool workers accused of assaulting child

Cheri Diggs, left, and Lisa Campbell.

Two childcare workers are accused of injuring a 4-year-old girl in their care at the James L. & Juliette McNeil Preschool Academy in the Woodlawn area.

Cherie Evette Diggs and Lisa Campbell are each facing charges of misdemeanor assault and battery, according to a press release by the Fairfax County Police Department.

Police were called to the Franconia/Springfield Healthplex on April 21 to check on injuries to the girl after the mother found bruises on her body, the release said. After an investigation by police and Child Protective Services, warrants were issued for both women. Diggs turned herself in on May 3, while Campbell turned herself in on May 4.

Each has been fired by the school, according to the FCPD press release.

Campbell, 38, was a teacher at the academy since 2014, according to a bio on the school’s website. She is listed as having more than 15 years experience as a child care worker.

Diggs, 40, worked as a teacher’s assistant at the school since 2013, according to her bio, and had more than 10 years of experience in early childhood education.

The McNeil Preschool Academy is part of Hopkins House, a non-profit founded in 1939 that includes three preschools, an early learning academy, summer camps and other services for children in Northern Virginia.