(Photo courtesy of Lindsey Barr), "Its pretty clear that public schools cant fire teachers for expressing concern about their kids education," Tyson Langhofer, senior counsel and Director of the Center for Academic Freedom at Alliance Defending Freedom, told Fox News Digital. Im just hoping my kids reality is not a blueprint for something that can happen across the nation., Big Tech news and how to take control of your data and devices, Teacher fired after DeSantis says bookshelf video was fake narrative, DeSantis sues Biden administration over college accreditation system, DeSantis signs bill to defund DEI programs at Floridas public colleges, Florida rejects social studies topics about communism, social justice. VIDEO: Substitute teacher fired for hitting, fighting student New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast. 2023 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The substitute teacher, who was not identified, had been working for the district since March 6 and was fired Thursday, the district said. See what that means for you. The Mesquite Education Association did not immediately respond to NBC News' request for comment. The district told CBS News Texas reporter Steve Pickett that Garcia passed all background checks and had strong references. The coach was placed on leave on April 3. pic.twitter.com/fy50zNS7Ab. The student, in class with 12- and 13-year-olds, was granted anonymity, for fear of retaliation. When ABC 10News asked National School District if staff or substitutes are prohibited from speaking with media, they told us that their policy states the following: The Superintendent or designee shall identify the district's and/or site's primary media contact to whom all media inquiries shall be routed. Texas substitute teacher fired after video showed she encouraged fighting in class, district says. Substitute teacher fired after viral video shows him slamming student Is this an indication of me hating teaching? I suspect I could lose my job as I elected to go home instead of finishing up the day, and the temp agency I work for may have a problem with that. A Centennial High School substitute. Oh, gym in a hallway? Substitute teacher fired after she 'encouraged students to fight each As part of the states Literacy Week last month, Covey said a book fair was supposed to be in school libraries to help promote reading. We contacted the superintendent of that school district, and asked them whether they could confirm or deny all or some of Maas's account, but we did not receive a substantive response in time for publication. It is unclear what the consequences for violating H.B. Valentina Hernandez said she was hired to substitute teach in the same school where the accused teacher, Jacqueline Ma, earned the title Teacher of the Year. Ma is currently in jail being held on no bail. The incident, which happened at Kimbrough Middle School in Mesquite, Texas,. We will protect the dignity and safety of our whole school community when we refrain from gossip, speculation, and spreading rumors, Shurtleff said in a letter to family members. Freaked out and left the school today. The unnamed teacher at Kimbrough middle school in Mesquite was fired last Thursday, after district officials obtained video of in-class fights from the previous day. Mesquite ISD substitute teacher fired, arrested after she 'encouraged It also referred the incident to police to "pursue . A Texas substitute teacher was fired and arrested for allegedly - CNN I had to stop it multiple times because I didnt think it was real. Condemning appalling and intolerable behavior, officials said the teacher helped coordinate the fights. Legal Statement. A substitute teacher is a person who teaches a school class when the regular teacher is absent or unavailable; e.g., because of illness, personal leave, maternal leave and so on. I was like, I couldnt watch the full video," Martinez said. I was like, 'This must be a prank. April 16, 2023 at 1:42 PM . Video shared after North Texas substitute teacher fired for allegedly In the footage, four students could be seen in two one-on-one fights. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. This is a real thing., Weeks after millions of people viewed the video of the empty bookshelves on social media, DeSantis dismissed the video and suggested that people like Covey were politically motivated.. ", I was like, I couldnt watch the full video, Martinez said. I wanted to show the reality of what the library looked like, he told The Post. If you do not want us and our partners to use cookies and personal data for these additional purposes, click 'Reject all'. Are you kidding me? Education dilemma: Why are kids (and teachers) missing so much school? Video shows substitute teacher organizing student fights in class Langhofer advised parents, like Barr, who are concerned about books, and curriculum, to "get educated" and "make your voices heard. According to a statement from Mesquite Independent School District (MISD) to NBC News, the teacher outlined rules for students to follow during the fight and instructed a student to monitor the door while the physical altercations took place. Lindsey Barr is filing a lawsuit against the school district where she used to be a substitute teacher. Becca Wood is a news and trending reporter for TODAY Digital based in New York City. Archived post. I just started crying. I said "Is there a litter box in here somewhere?" The Seattle Times generally does not name criminal suspects until they have been charged. After a photograph of the board was shared on social media . All rights reserved. Adam Sabes is a writer for Fox News Digital. I had no communication from the district or anything about what I was doing until DeSantis was asked the question and he kind of blew it up.. Legal Statement. Who's doing it?" As such, we are issuing a rating of "Unproven." Barr spoke to the principal of the school about the book, and asked that her children be excused from the reading hour. Therefore, ESS determined these policy violations made it necessary to part ways with this individual., The district has pushed back against Covey in recent days. I hate that, she said. The school district said the teacher outlined rules for the students to follow during the fight and instructed someone to monitor the door. Florida substitute teacher fired over video DeSantis called 'fake Kamiak High coach, substitute teacher fired after sexual misconduct Substitute teacher at Kimbrough middle school in Mesquite helped coordinate fights during class, officials say. You can change your choices at any time by clicking on the 'Privacy & cookie settings' or 'Privacy dashboard' links on our sites and apps. Covey pointed out to The Post that the 6,000 books approved by the state is 0.375 percent of the 1.6 million book titles that Duval County Public Schools says need to be reviewed. The investigation was referred to Mesquite police. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. MARYLAND TEACHERS UNION OFFERS $1,000 GRANT TO ADVANCE BLACK LIVES MATTER IN SCHOOL'S DEMANDS, Lindsey Barr is filing a lawsuit against the school district where she used to be a substitute teacher. According to . The district called her actions "appalling and intolerable. Duval County Public Schools, the district for Mandarin Middle School, urged educators last month to follow the new laws and err on the side of caution to determine whether a book is developmentally appropriate for student use., They removed every single book from my childrens classrooms Covey wrote on Jan. 27. However, when she came to work on Thursday, she says district HR told her she had been let go and that she was no longer needed. April 16 (UPI) --A substitute teacher for a school district in Texas has been fired after she allegedly encouraged students to brawl in what parents have called an in-class "fight club."The . They said oh because youre late and because you had an interview with the news. I was, like, this must be a prank. MESQUITE, Texas A substitute teacher with Mesquite ISD has been fired after she reportedly encouraged students to fight each other during class, the district stated. Parents have filed thousands of attempts to pull books from shelves, often citing the texts sexually explicit content although the majority of books targeted are those by and about people of color and LGBTQ individuals, per analyses from PEN America and the American Library Association. GA substitute teacher fired after raising concerns about picture book A substitute teacher in Texas was fired after she allegedly set up a classroom fight that included students. MESQUITE (CBSNewsTexas.com) -- A substitute teacher at a Mesquite ISD middle school was fired and arrested after she "encouraged students to fight each other during class," the district said. The school became aware of the allegations March 31, when a staff member shared with a principal that they were notified by a community member, according to Mukilteo School District spokesperson Diane Bradford. I go to the office are you ready for this? We note, parenthetically, that the same week we were obliged to look into this story, we also investigated the claim that a different school in a different state installed litter boxes to accommodate students who "identify as cats.". The teacher, Natally . Snopes has identified a school district in California where we know Maas had worked as a substitute teacher within the previous six months. During the fights, a timer can be heard going off. The district confirmed that Hernandez works for an agency that helps them secure substitute teachers. At least four students were seen fighting in the video, according to the outlet. But Covey, who says DeSantiss remarks absolutely played a role in his firing, argued that taking books away from classrooms and libraries is beyond politics.. When he returned to work at the middle school, Covey saw the empty bookshelves and started filming a 17-second video. Covey was fired this week after Florida Gov. Can substitute teachers be fired? - Quora Martinez's daughter, who chose to remain anonymous to KXAS for fear of retaliation, told the station that the teacher also pushed the desks for the fight and that some students were bleeding when they left the classroom. Kate Ruane, a director at the free-speech nonprofit organization PEN America, said in an interview that Duvals termination of Covey may have violated the teachers First Amendment rights. "I was devastated. All rights reserved. The community is wanting answers after the video. This is not real.. See the video below for the full story. I read books about the consequences of this when I was in school , Since y'all wanna play the "this isn't really happening" game https://t.co/bVUFOXPc6a pic.twitter.com/fUUkJgi5ls. Hide your books to avoid felony charges, Fla. schools tell teachers. Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning, 2023 Guardian News & Media Limited or its affiliated companies. ", According to the lawsuit, Heather Tucker, the principal of McCallister Elementary School, told Barr that her concern over the book "revealed biases that raised a question whether she could support every child.". "Excuse me? 1995 - 2023 by Snopes Media Group Inc. The man had been working at the school since September 2022, when he was hired as an assistant football coach.
