09/02/2009
Minnesota Teachers Who Mocked Student for Being Gay Are On Leave
A Minnesota school district which recently paid a family $25,000 after a high school junior was harassed by two teachers over his perceived sexual orientation, has announced that the teachers involved are on leave.
The Star Tribune reported in August, "The boy's 'fence swings both ways,' teacher Diane Cleveland commented during a class in the 2007-2008 school year, according to an investigation by the Minnesota Department of Human Rights. When the boy wrote a report on Ben Franklin, Cleveland allegedly said before the entire class that the boy had a 'thing for older men.' Another teacher, Walter Filson, said in front of other students that the boy 'enjoys wearing women's clothes.' When the boy decided to report on Abraham Lincoln, Filson allegedly said, 'Since you like your men older ...' the Human Rights report said."
Now, the paper reports: "Diane Cleveland, a 39-year-old social studies teacher, and Walter Filson, a 56-year-old law enforcement teacher, went on leave within the past week, said Ginny Karbowski, director of career and technical education for the Secondary Technical Education Program (STEP) in Anoka, where the two taught. Cleveland's attorney, Phil Villaume, said: 'Our position is that she is taking an unpaid, voluntary leave of absence at her request. ... This was done in the last week, and it was her decision and her decision alone.' Villaume doesn't represent Filson and couldn't comment on his status. Filson couldn't be reached for comment."
The teachers should be fired.
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15 comments:
I agree. If it's proven, they should certainly be sacked.
Not just fired but sent to
sensitivity training...These
are teachers...They set examples
just like parents...
Laurie
Why is it a voluntary leave of absence at her request? They should both be suspended while the allegations are investigated. Then if they are proven true, they should both be sacked. It's disgraceful to have teachers making snidey comments about pupils whatever the context. Makes you wonder why some people ever felt that teaching would be a suitable career for them in the first place. Good to know there are some like you out there Steevo :)
Despicable
unbelievable - somebody should be out picketing in front of their homes or something just so they know what humiliation feels like
Interesting. If the charges are true and the teachers are at fault for such a terrible act, then they should be fired. But, let's say the student was falsifying info, their reputations would be permanently hurt.
In a twisted way, let's hope that the teachers are at fault and fired promptly.
Voluntary leave?? shows that the school doesn't care...
They should be fired.
@OZ... i disagree. The teacher likely used the union contract in her favor. Most teachers are good or very good. That's why contracts exist. They need a strong union cuz school administrators can screw them royally w/o it.
She likely should be fired, but the school has to follow all th rules so they dont get sued for breech of contract.
Remember: teachers like me can be accused of all sorts of crap. So I need a strong union too. 2 sides to th coin. I say fire their asses if proven true.
@aek: public teacher statements like this can be investigated fairly. And usually r in my experience. Those teachers also r likely to have a file full of complaints. Just th way it is.
@goleft.: I like that idea. Free speech and all.
@hci: yes. I agree. But sometimes the truth is stranger than fiction. So follow contract and policies. Have a fair process and bend over backwards. That way teachers who are not sure of how the admin works, can see proof of fair process which protects ME. One time a fundi mom had a shit hemmorage for weeks cuz she did not want her 9th grade son in my class cuz "..he's a god damn fag!"
She was very public. Principal told her no. Cant do that. Cuz I could and would sue and win. She went to th top and they all backed me. The poor kid was a sweetie too. He liked me and I enjoyed having him in class. At some point he came to me and apologized for what his mom was doing. I smiled, told him not to worry that I was a "tough SOB" and I will win! We laughed at that. He felt a lot better.
@scouse: Innocent until proven guilty protects me too. There are many good teachers like me. :-)
Also: Her lawyer can say anything and the district can NOT respond due to personnel confidentiality. It could not be voluntary at all.
Remember those 2 r the rare exception.
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Laurie: Training prolly a waste of time, but yeah. Once they r fired the district cant make them do anything.
They would also likely loose their credential/license to teach.
I can't believe that these two teachers have acted in such a way. By harassing a (possibly) gay student, they send the message to other students that harassing gays is OK. This is unacceptable behavior for a teacher.
I expect that the school will dismiss the teachers if the allegations are proven. No school wants the image that their teachers harass students and get away with it.
@Jason Carwin. U said "I can't believe that these two teachers have acted in such a way. By harassing ...This is unacceptable behavior for a teacher.
I expect that the school will dismiss the teachers if the allegations are proven. No school wants the image that their teachers harass students and get away with it."
Let's hope the last sentence is true. But I am sure some schools and/or school districts don't care as long as they don't get caught and sued.
BUT that's changing. If they enforce the law and hold people accountable just for fear of money wasted in lawsuits, well OK. Take what we can get!
Education and enforcement are the cornerstone. Lynching a black man who looked at a white lady used to be no big deal in many part of this country.
That has certainly changed.
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sry i reached to conclusions thinking it was already proven.
The principal could have at least said they are taking this very seriously and the school has zero policy toward such behavior or something i dunno.
Sorry for my one word response. It was triggered by my experience with a teacher who tormented me for a solid year, in front of the entire class. I was only seven, and I had no idea what she was doing was improper behavior for a teacher, so I didn't say anything about it to my parents 'til I was nearly 15.
Do you by any chance have a follow up to this story?
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