offices - which they've dubbed "teacher jail" or "rubber rooms" - say they've been ensnared in a system that denies them due process and is weighted heavily against them.
Employees complain that they have to sign in and out, even to use the restroom, and that they're not allowed to visit with their fellow teachers in adjoining cubicles.
While the district policy says teachers should be required to perform "duties within their job classification," housed teachers say there's no real work for them to do, so they spend their time reading, blogging or talking.
What's most upsetting, they say, is that they're not told of the specific allegations against them until the investigation is completed, to prevent them from contacting students or parents. That leaves the teachers in emotional limbo, compounded by the fear that they'll eventually be fired.
"I'm in tears every day that I'm here," said one arts teacher, adding that she's suffered from headaches, vomiting and hives in the three months that she's been housed.
The district tries to wrap up its probe in 120 working days - that's six months - although complaints involving physical or sexual abuse may take longer because police must first determine whether to pursue criminal charges.
"The number of calls skyrocketed in the weeks and months after Miramonte," said Juan Perez, one of three detectives assigned to the Los Angeles Police Department's Sexually Exploited Child Unit.
"We're again experiencing a significant increase in the number of calls, especially those like, `The teacher made me feel uncomfortable,' or `The teacher brushed my hair or touched my leg.'
"Some we can solve in a day or two, the others may take us months. It depends on the availability of the victims and the complexity of the allegations," Perez said.
Once police complete their investigation, administrators can interview students, parents and co-workers to determine whether the employee may have violated professional guidelines, such as the state Education Code or the district's Code of Conduct with Students.
According to the policy, the housed employee is interviewed last.
Some housed teachers say, however, that officials had completed their report and decided to take disciplinary action by the time they were finally asked for their version of events.
Randy Traweek is a sixth-grade teacher at the Westside Global Awareness Magnet, and a John Hopkins Teaching Fellow whose classroom was once featured on "Good Morning America."
He's been housed since April, when his principal heard rumors circulating around campus that Traweek had touched the buttocks of a female student in October 2011. The LAPD investigated and found no criminal wrongdoing.
The district, however, asked Traweek's students whether anyone had ever made them feel uncomfortable. Officials are pursuing a case against the 28-year LAUSD veteran for touching the girl, as well as one boy who said Traweek had hugged him and another who said the teacher had smacked him twice on the rear end.
Traweek is fighting the allegations, saying the boy he reportedly hugged wasn't yet assigned to his class at the time of the alleged incident, and the incident with the other boy wasn't corroborated by any witnesses.
"Oh, my God, I would never hurt these kids - never, never, never," Traweek said. "I just love teaching kids. It's my passion in life."
Despite the district's hard-line stance against misconduct, officials say they will return a teacher to the classroom if evidence shows that no wrongdoing occurred.
That's what happened Tuesday, when a veteran teacher was told she can return on Wednesday to her San Fernando Valley elementary school after being housed for 10 weeks.
"I am so beyond excited," said the teacher, who asked not to be identified.
According to the teacher, she'd accidentally "tapped" a student's stomach while trying to get him to stop squirming as he stood next to her desk. The boy began crying, so the teacher took him to the office, alerted the principal and contacted the boy's mother, who thanked her for the call.
"It made me really nervous," the teacher said. "Post-Miramonte, it's a new game."
Three days later, the boy's father filed a complaint and the teacher was pulled from the classroom. Parents at the school rallied around her, posting an online petition, and printing T-shirts with her name.
"I know the teacher and know she wouldn't hurt a kid," said mom Julia Bricklin.
"I don't begrudge another parent looking out for their own child, but we need a better process. We need to be able to put in a system that will punish them immediately or return them to the classroom if they're found to be innocent.
"If we conservatively say that many teachers deserve to be removed, then there's a number who don't," Bricklin said. "The process isn't fair and it's cruel and it's not fair to the children."
Officials say the process may be time-consuming and frustrating, but it's the best they can do as they try to balance student safety and teachers' rights.
Despite the pending audit and the continued outrage over the sex-abuse scandal, Ekchian said LAUSD's teaching corps is one to be proud of.
"The majority of our employees do an outstanding job," she said. "When we discuss our housed employees, it is a very small number who are being reassigned so investigations can occur for the safety of our students."
2 comments:
Well, Mr. Fletcher talks a good game. He is absolutely right but what has he done to help teachers smeared by the district's lies?
The following is my answer at www.perdaily.com to what you posted. Be in touch, if you believe there is strength in unity: Lenny@perdaily.com
http://www.perdaily.com/2012/11/lausd-false-imprisonment-of-teachers-does-balance-student-safety-with-teachers-rights.html
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