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A South Carolina college apologized Monday after a faculty member, calling them "happy pills," handed out M&Ms in prescription drug bottles to little kids at a fun run over the weekend.

"While we know this professor meant the candy to serve as a treat, the method of distribution may have confused pre-school children whose parents have taught them not to take pills from pharmaceutical bottles," Horry Georgetown Technical College, in East Conway near Myrtle Beach, said in a statement. "We regret further that professors and administrators are human and, although eager to share information about growing careers, sometimes make mistakes. This particular mistake will not occur again."

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The faculty member, who wasn't identified, handed out the standard-issue prescription pill bottles to promote her medical technology program. The labels prescribed the "Happy Pills" to "A Great Kid," instructing "patients" to "Take 1 m&m every 2 to 4 hours."

"I know they had good intentions, but maybe it should have been handled in a different way," Tiffany Myers, whose son got one of the bottles, told NBC station WMBF of Myrtle Beach. Myers said her husband is a firefighter and paramedic who "comes across children that get into medicine bottles quite frequently, and it can be very damaging, or it can be life-threatening."

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lol "Happy Pills" “@WLBT: College apologizes for pill bottles filled with candy given to kids http://t.co/xpE4MB2pVI pic.twitter.com/C9XIDgP1bA” — Jason Meeks (@fondrenlock) February 16, 2015

— M. Alex Johnson