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| Rafe Esquith |
Esquith Case Gets Curiouser
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WRITTEN BY: MIKE ANTONUCCI - JUN• 24•15
Teacher
and author Rafe Esquith was removed from his fifth-grade classroom in April
amid allegations of “misconduct.” The first reports were that it had
something to do with him reading The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn to
his class. But this controversy had little to do with the book at all.
Speaking
to the Los Angeles Times, “Esquith acknowledged Monday that he quipped
with students that if he could not raise enough money for the annual
Shakespearean play they would all have to perform their parts naked like the
king in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.”
That’s where it gets weird.
* The word “naked” apparently set off alarms in another
teacher, who reported the incident to the principal. According to Esquith, the
principal wasn’t too concerned about it, but it did get kicked upstairs by
someone.
* Based on the information released so far, it doesn’t look
like Esquith went to the union for representation, but instead hired
high-powered attorney Mark Geragos.
* Geragos claims Esquith has already been cleared by the
California Commission on Teacher Credentialing, which means someone reported it
to the state level. Also, if true, the CCTC acted remarkably fast.
* Los Angeles schools superintendent Ramon Cortines
said the case involves “serious issues that go beyond the initial
investigation.”
* Esquith
said “district investigators never explained the allegation of
misconduct lodged against him but said they were not short of questions when he
was interviewed. They asked, for example, the names of teachers who may not
like him, the women he dated in college and whether he was counseled as a
teenager for pushing someone at summer camp. “I asked them, ‘Have you
talked to my students?’ and they absolutely said to me, ‘We’re only looking to
talk to people who don’t like you,'” Esquith said. “It just seemed incredibly
unfair.”
* Esquith and Geragos intend to file a class action suit on
behalf of Los Angeles teachers who have received similar treatment and have
been placed on administrative leave. What’s strange about that is they did it
with no
coordination with the teachers’ union, which negotiated the current
disciplinary procedure and has yet to even file a grievance or make any other
formal motion on Esquith’s behalf.
There has been no report so far of a parent or a student
coming forward to make a complaint against Esquith, on this or any other issue.
I wouldn’t expect the teacher who started this ball rolling to identify himself
or herself, but however this turns out, there needs to be an investigation into
the investigation.
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