Teacher Who Humiliated Kid With Autism Gets Her Job Back (WTF????)

Yizuman

I know there was a thread here about this story and I cannot find it.

Anyway, here's a follow up story: http://www.disaboom.com/Blogs/disabled_politico/archive/2009/06/11/teacher-who-let-students-quot-vote-out-quot-5-year-old-boy-with-asperger-s-syndrome-gets-her-job-back.aspx

Wendy Portillo, the Kindergarten teacher infamous for permitting neurotypical students to vote a boy with a form of Autism out of her class, will keep both her contract with the St. Lucie County school district and her tenured status after a unanimous vote by the School Board. Portillo is "overjoyed" by the ruling and hopes to return to teaching.

In May of 2008, Ms. Portillo led her students in a reality TV-like exercise in which Alex Barton, then 5 years old, was made to stand in front of the class while classmates listed reasons they didn't like him. Classmates called Alex "disgusting" and "annoying," among other things. Then, the class took a vote and by a margin of 14 to 2 chose to exclude Alex from class. He was made to leave the Kindergarten classroom and spent the rest of the day in the school nurse's office.

Alex Barton reportedly has not returned to school since the incident. Shortly after Alex was voted out of class, his mother said he was so traumatized that he was unable to even ride past his former elementary school in a car without screaming and begging not to be forced to return to school.

Alex Barton holding an adult's hand Thirteen individuals testified before the School Board in favor of permitting Wendy Portillo to return to teaching. These supporters included Portillo's sons, former colleagues at Morningside Elementary School, and parents whose children had been students of Portillo during her 12 year teaching career. No one appeared at the hearing to give the Barton family's side of the story.

Portillo must still serve out the remainder of a one-year unpaid suspension ordered as a result of the case.

Scully

Disgusting.

People like that shouldn't be allowed to be around children, let alone serve as teachers and role models for them.

purplesofa

That whole school system should be checked out.

No wonder there is so much bullying in school.

purps

JeffT

I suspect we can thank the Union for this one. Protecting members is much more important than protecting kids. Last time we ran up against a totally out of line teacher the principal of the school told my wife there was nothing he could do.

Hittman

Yep, unions for sure, gutlessness on the part of the school board as well.

Arn't government schools just wonderful?

mindmelda

They're so hard up for teachers they'll put up with anything. A choir teacher in my oldest daughter's former high school (graduated Homeschooling/GED after I took her out of this school, which was a joke, three other teachers I know of there were sexually in appropriate with students, nothing done) was just sentenced to a year in jail for having sex with one of her 16 year old students.

The woman's husband was the school counselor, and I tend to feel badly for him, he seemed a pretty nice guy who tried to be helpful a time or two. But, who knows? I guess neither one of them have job their now, he also resigned just because of the situation with his wife. They had 3 kids!

I have a son, 16 who is HFA, High functioning autism/Aspergers. After some of the stuff I've seen in public schools dealing with ALL kids, I can't send my kids back to public schools. They're babysitting factories for thugs at their worse, and I don't know who treats kids worse...the other students or the teachers and staff.

Occasionally, you find a gem of a teacher who rises above the system. My son had a special ed teacher like that in middle school, and I still love the guy. He was a former Army sergeant, and I've never seen anyone use discipline better in the true sense of the word, compassionately.