A New Jersey preschool administrator has been accused of punishing two students by threatening them with a knife, according to authorities.

Adetokunbo Akinnaso, 64, was charged with two counts of cruelty or neglect to a child after Special Victims Unit investigators learned she had brandished a knife and threatened to harm two misbehaving 4-year-olds at the Dawn to Dusk Christian Childcare and Learning Center in Plainfield, according to the Union County Prosecutor's Office.

Neither child was harmed in the exchange earlier this year, authorities said.

It's not known if Akinnaso has retained an attorney. The preschool, which serves students through age 13, has declined comment.

Ronald Bolandi, the interim schools superintendent in Plainfield, said the city's childcare centers are privately owned and the district does not hire their staffs, but it does provide resources for students to attend the centers.

"In order to ensure the safety of our students, the center director was removed immediately and will not be returning to the preschool," Bolandi said in a statement. "This requirement was necessary in order for the owner to continue her contract with the district."