Francesco Portelos' Poison - Threats To Principals

“Issues at Your School” – An email no NYC principal wants to receive

AUGUST 4, 2015

Turning the tables. That’s what progressive caucus UFT Solidarity began to do when members contact us that they are under warrantless attack. For almost a decade NYC DOE administrators had unfettered power to destroy careers. Problem with a teacher who grieves contractual violations or want to get rid of a pesky chapter leader? No problem. All a principal had to do was start building a paper trail of trumped up charges and fraudulent observations. Sometimes a simple phone call to the DOE’s Office of Special Investigation (OSI) would do the trick. The teacher would be removed for months or years without knowing why they were removed. That’s if they were tenured. If not, the would be discontinued and out in a few days. The union? The UFT has been absent in thwarting attacks against members and sometimes is actually involved in helping the members get railroaded See [UPDATED] Bizarre Behavior Coming from Queens UFT Office.

So what is a member under attack to do? Well, luckily we live in the age of technology and have come up with some tools to fight back. This is how it works, and it does work. (Not all the time but it’s getting better.)

At UFT Solidarity, we have collaborated on an email we send to administrators who are bullying and harassing our members. The email is written in a way where we let the administrator know that the members in their school and not sitting ducks and will have support. We let the administrator know that we are educating their staff on how to fight back and encourage them to support and not continue their attacks. What we hope, or assume, happens is that that the administrator sends it to their superintendent and DOE lawyers. In turn we hope that the superintendent and lawyers respond to the administrator with something like this:

“Oh no. We have seen these before and it can get ugly. Expect there to be Freedom of Information Law requests on your records such as time cards, financial records and emails. They even obtain video surveillance footage. Your staff is probably already secretly recording you. Expect stories of you to be

added to social media with comments being added by staff, students and parents. You will be added to their Administrator’s in Need of Improvement (ANOI) list online if you have not been already.uftsolidarity.org/anoi. Expect them to launch investigations on anything you have done that violates a chancellor’s regulation, policy or law. Investigators will be coming. Finally, expect a group of their members and your staff and students, albeit small, to be outside your school with flyers and signs. If you have not bought a Costco size bottle of Tylenol, then we suggest you do that.”

At least that is what we hope the lawyers tell the administrator and they second guess their future actions.

The Email:

——-

Principal X,

Unfortunately your school has come to the attention of our teacher advocacy group. Apparently there are allegations of harassment and unwarranted attacks on educators at your school. As you could imagine, an atmosphere of workplace bullying and harassment is not conducive to a nurturing learning environment for our students.

Just as a courtesy, we are letting you know that we are educating your staff members with information on how to defend their careers so they may continue to instruct and nurture students to their fullest potential. Those tools can be in the form of legally audio recording, using the Freedom of Information Law to obtain information necessary to prove their allegations against you, organizing rallies and creating various social media articles.

Perhaps your best recourse would be to speak with the superintendent, your senior field counsel and Borough Support Center representative, to figure out ways to support educators rather than treading on their careers.

Thank you. Sincerely,

UFT Solidarity

“Building a stronger union.”

——————-

If you don’t believe me, then you can perform an internet search on many of the administrators we have listed on our ANOI list. You can ask Principal Micheaux and AP Martinez of the Bronx. Ask Principal Adonna McFarland or Principal Namita Dwarka. Our list is over 100. Namita Dwarka and her school has been on the cover of the NY Post the last three days. The brave people responsible are UFT Solidarity members and supporters who have been following our playbook.

Also see our campaign page as our team and platform are growing. For this reason I have not been able to blog

much here. My time has been spent building and organizing with great educator activists and enjoying time with my family. My sleeves are rolled up and we are ready to increase our work this September. Our ATR Alliance group is also growing and becoming more knowledgeable. A similar letter is being drafted for ATR Field Supervisors.

As we delve deeper into the UFT 2016 campaign season, expect more push back in more schools. We will bring positive change one way or another. Improving the classroom settings will improve the classroom learning.

UFT Solidarity - "Building a Stronger Union." UFTSolidarity.org

Join us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/UFTSolidarity Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/mrportelos

From Editor Betsy Combier:

If you want to follow up this post with more information about Francesco Portelos, please see the following:

• Francesco Portelos - Cultist Behavior?
• Francesco Portelos: "A Troublemaking, Combative, and Disgruntled Employee", Loses His Federal Case by Editor Betsy Combier
• Francesco Portelos and His "Victim Complex"
• EDITORIAL: Cyberstalker Francesco Portelos and His Blame Game Must Be Stopped
• Parents against teacher tenure say they're being harassed by educator
• Teacher’s tweets threaten kids in tenure suit: parents
• Francesco Portelos and NY State Tenure Law
• OP-ED: Why Cyberstalker Francesco Portelos and His Bully Mob, UFT Solidarity, Failed
• Editorial: Is Francesco Portelos a Danger to Tenure Law? by Betsy Combier
• Francesco Portelos: Hate Mailers From The DOE, I Gotcha!

 And, at his sons' former school PS 013, (Francesco's sons were taken out and moved to another school after the incidents shown below), Francesco Portelos wanted to be elected to the School Leadership Team, and believed that the Principal was trying to stop him from winning. Francesco retaliated by verbally abusing people in the school, parents, and anyone else, according to his own website's papers:

“How to File False Allegations Against a Parent” by Principal Paul Martuccio

 BY FRANCESCO PORTELOSNOVEMBER 1, 2019

It’s Election Day. Imagine as you walk into your polling center, a candidate’s people are inside handing you $200 gift cards and the polling volunteers are telling you who to vote for. Well, that’s kind of what Principal Paul Martuccio orchestrated at his school. Read below.

The day of PTA elections of May 2018, Principal Martuccio and his admin told teachers, secretaries, custodians, school nurses and even a substitute to come back to vote against me, as he could not have someone challenge him, ever. Instead he wanted minions ignorant of rules, laws and procedures.

I get it though, it’s easier not to be challenged. Just ask any dictator, ever in history. Just ask King George III about that annoying George Washington and his buddies who dared to not want taxation without representation.

Whether they knew it or not, Principal Martuccio, Assistant Principal Stephanie Fremer, Assistant Principal Panzella and Assistant Principal Nola were directly violating Chancellor’s Regulation A-660, that states:

“The principal, parent coordinator, and other school officials must not interfere, directly or indirectly, in the PA/PTA’s internal affairs, including the election of officers and allocation of funds.”

Seems pretty black and white and any violation of this chips away at the democracy within our schools. After staff members told me this occurred, I made a decision to find out what Principal Paul Martuccio, and the PTA board, did not want me to know. I was made aware that they knew of my history of blowing the whistle at IS 49, a school PS 13 feeds into, so what reason would a public school have to not want a whistleblower around, unless they are hiding something.

I started by sending the below emails to them and district personnel. My defense/offense began at that point. The line was drawn in the sand. Remember, he and those involved, started this with that single action of badmouthing me to my children’s teachers. Up until that point it was pretty calm at the school and they have no evidence to show otherwise. My timeline of events is accurate.

___________________

From: Francesco Portelos <mrportelos@gmail.com>
Date: Tue, May 22, 2018, 8:51 PM
Subject: Election issues. Didn’t have to be this way.
To: PMartuc2@schools. nyc. gov <PMartuc2@schools.nyc.gov>
Cc: Panzella Valerie (31R013) <VPanzella@schools.nyc.gov>, Nola Danielle <DNola@schools.nyc.gov>, Fremer Stephanie (31R013) <SFremer@schools.nyc.gov>, Richards Teresa (31R013 ) <TRichards8@schools.nyc.gov>

Paul and admin, 

    Well done with tonight. I was going to email you a few days ago, under the assumption that the administration was going to go around and tell the staff to come to the elections and to not to vote for me. I didn’t want to make that assumption, but I’ve been around the block long enough to know that that was going to happen. 

It didn’t take long for your staff to start talking and now it’s all out there that this indeed happened. It’s unfortunate, because my intentions for the school were just like I said in my speech. Yes, I’ve been the subject and the complainant in many investigations, but I do not regret any of them. I have to live with the fact that I had to fight hard and that scares people. However, know that your staff already started talking. 
For almost 2 years, as a parent in your school, I’ve been very, and I mean extremely, quiet. I love the education my children are receiving, but the fact that you and your administration went around to the staff and did this is unwarranted and uncalled for. Also, it’s a violation of Chancellors Regulation A-660. You, not me, made this bed and now you have to deal with it.  

We could have worked very well together, if you just give me a chance. Ms. Nola and Ms. Fremer, please make sure to keep all the documentation from the sign in tonight. Thank you.  

Sincerely,

Francesco A. Portelos

____________

I went into FOIL mode and made several Freedom of Information Law request with foil@schools.nyc.gov. I wanted to know what they were hiding, if anything. Spoiler alert…they were hiding.

” Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Law, please provide to me, by email, a copy of all financial records from the PS 13 Staten Island PTA. These should include bank records, as in deposits, withdrawals, cleared checks, statements and/or transfers as well as purchases and/or purchase orders from September 1, 2015 to June 15, 2018.“
and
“Per Session records for PS 13 Principal Paul Martuccio for years 2012 and 2014 as indicated on website SeeThroughNY.net (Not sure if the 2012 $14,088 amount and 2014 $9,870 amount are calendar years Jan-Dec or school years Sep-June.) Records should include time cards and respective per session sheets, as well as spreadsheet indicating dates, hours worked and amount paid.“

Results: Excerpts of what I received show that the PTA, right after I announced my campaign to run in the PTA election, spent $8,000 to buy the teachers Staples gift cards. Not to raise any red flags, they also broke the payments down into $2,000 increments. There were no meeting motions, no approvals from membership, and data shows they had never done that before. So now Martuccio and minions tell teachers to vote against a troublemaker and the PTA hands them $200 gift cards. Sounds pretty legit, right? The PTA also spent over $56,000 without parent membership approval.

Here is one copy of the checks signed by then PTA President Michele Sammarco and Vice President Marci Dispenza to Staples.

One over the checks made out to Staples around election time.

No worries though, as the NYC Special Commissioner’s office received the allegation from the district about this and referred it down to NYCDOE’s Office of Special Investigation. OSI Investigator Clinton Silvey interviewed me and then closed down the case without interviewing anyone else. NYCDOE #2 attorney Charity Guerra signed off on it. See below. Remember that after some previous botched OSI investigations, DOE attorneys had to start signing off on reports. See the stories of Wei Liu.

Here is a redacted version: F15879-ptr-2019-06-12-18-10396XDownload

It’s actually a great tactic by the NYCDOE Office of General Counsel and OSI team. If you don’t want the cases substantiated, the evidence is strong, so just don’t ask any questions and close it out. I mean, who is going to stop them? I’m told SCI has reopened this case and others for re-investigation, but we will see.

The summer came and went and I made the decision that I need to actually pull the stops and increase my involvement in the school. I do not scare easily and pushing me away only peaks my interest as to what is happening. Also, getting even more involved was the only way to make a positive difference for my own kids and their schoolmates. The crooked actions of the PTA and principal Paul Martuccio were not going to deter me.

I attended the PS 13 September School Leadership Team meeting. School Leadership Team Meetings are open to the public in every school and I actually had a small part in that with my friend Michael Thomas. I asked to speak as an observer and was allowed to. I believe my speech then involved working together and I gave positive feedback. Thought I’d try the honey approach by commending the school and PTA.

Unfortunately, as time progressed in the weeks ahead, things continued to deteriorate. I kept asking for the mandated Title I meeting parents were supposed to have and Principal Paul Martuccio kept sidestepping the issue. I kept pushing that PTA meetings and SLT meetings be live streamed so parents who work can be informed. However, why would Principal Paul Martuccio wants us parents deciding how he should be spending federal Title I money in his school?

I could tell he had enough of me asking questions and raising issues at meetings, but how could he stop me? Could he observe me and give me poor ratings? No. Could he push me out like he has done to his staff before? No. What about false allegations to obtain a “limited access” letter against me and prevent me from going to meetings? Turns out I was several chapters ahead in their paybook.

The Ish Hits the Fan
It was time for the October 2018 School Leadership Team meeting. Tensions were high and even PTA Treasurer Jodi Reen stopped me outside of school to yell at me stating “You are making this a lot more work. This is a volunteer job and now we have to put financial reports together!” I think that was in response to the fact the PTA never shared a detailed treasury report. Why should they? Parents send money in with their kids for smencils and snacks, and Paul and the PTA spend it as they please.

Some people are very predictable. While I do not prefer to audio record, I knew I should anytime I spoke with PS 13’s PTA and administration. I am glad I did. I asked to speak at the October 9, 2018 meeting and was again allowed to. I spoke about:
– The fact that the school lacks in parent involvement as is evidenced by the poor turnout at meetings and response rate to the parent surveys every year.
– How I taught at schools that had very strong and involved PTA that brought a lot to the classroom.
– How the administration was involved in the PTA election and it violated Chancellor’s Regulation. I pointed out some staff members like Matthew Santarpia, SLT secretary, and how he never went to a PTA meeting except when it was time to come vote for Principal Paul Martuccio’s candidate.
-Community Education Council president Mike Rosen was there too and he along with PTA parents took the opportunity to take shots. Mike Rosen was actually removed as PS 13’s liaison and also removed from the CEC due to conflicts of interest.

In any case, I made it clear that historically, when I am trying to help a school, like IS 49, and I am pushed away and attacked, some would say it can be dangerous. Dangerous in that I am familiar with rules and laws, and that I do not scare or back away. Dangerous in that if I smell something is afoul and it negatively affects children, I investigate.

Well….that’s all that they needed. They heard that word “dangerous” and with the help District 31 attorney Lisa Becker, and Paul Martuccio’s CSA union reps, they launched a trumped up attack. Continue reading to see how they all fabricated and corroborated on reports.

I filed a Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) request for all of PS 13’s safety reports between a certain time period. Call it a hunch, but wouldn’t you know that I was reported as “dangerous” while simply speaking cordially, as a parent, at a School Leadership Team meeting? In addition, I filed FOIL requests regarding investigations launched against me at the school. Even though the NYCDOE Office of Special investigations does not have jurisdiction to investigate a parent, PS 13 staff and PTA launched more than 4 investigations. Turns out I wasn’t alone. PS 13 has filed false allegations against other parents and guardians for getting involved and speaking up.

I ran into a PS 13 guardian in Home Depot who used to come to meetings and ask questions with me. He and his family had disappeared. “What happened to you?” I asked. He goes on to tell me a story of how ever since I brought him into meetings at PS 13, and he was speaking up with his family, that child services start showing up at his house. He told me they showed up three or four times and found nothing yet they kept coming back. They stopped showing up to meetings and ACS stopped showing up at their house. This connects to another story I heard from another parent who said she was advocating for special needs students at PS 13 and all of a sudden investigators showed up at her house as well. She too stopped showing up at PTA meetings.

Here is what the FOIL reponse furnished.

I don’t even know what Mr. Turner’s car looks like, nor do I even remember walking towards my own car that might have been in her car’s direction.

…and there you have it, BUT what about the recording? Wouldn’t you agree that even ten corroborated false witness statements are not as strong as an actual audio recording?

Here is the entire 14 minute recording. At 4 minutes into it I said “I tried to help a school [IS 49 in the past], and I was pushed out, and then I try to help from the outside, and that is when some would say I become more dangerous.”

What do we do when a parent and staff members file false reports? Well, according to the Office of Special Investigation, NYCDOE Family and Community Engagement and some District 31 personnel, nothing needs to happen when public employees lie against parents. You’ll also notice that in a cowardly fashion, Principal Paul Martuccio did not put his name on anything. Staff told me that’s how he operates  

Listen to the part in the end where Principal Paul Martuccio says this was “good, good, good.” In other words, they can use this speech to come at me. Did I sound like an aggressive man looking to hurt people, or a parent that wants to see positive change and is hitting roadblocks? Stay tuned for the next post where we share the DOE and District 31’s reactions or lack thereof. 

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About Francesco Portelos

Parent and Educator fighting for the student and the teacher.

View all posts by Francesco Portelos →

TAGGED  Assistant Principal Stephanie Fremer, Principal Paul Martuccio.

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Court orders NYCDOE to post union related retaliation against teacher in every school »

NYC Chancellor Richard Carranza and His "Toxic Whiteness" Campaign Inside The Department of Education

NYC Chancellor Richard Carranza

From the desk of Betsy Combier:

Throughout the New York City public school system and all its' constituents is a progressively angry discussion about NYC Chancellor Richard Carranza's "race war" against 'Whites'. See my previous post, Carranza's Book For New Teachers and The Essay "Dear White Teacher"

Anyone who has had children in the public schools of NYC can see that schools are segregated.

I have been a teacher and parent advocate for more than 20 years, with 4 children going through the NYC DOE, and I have seen the gap between "good" schools and "bad" schools. My standards are: the level of safety for all students; school management of discipline; school administration of policies of respect for all; and rigorous teaching and creative learning opportunities. Full disclosure - two of my children went to Stuyvesant High School, another, La Guardia High School ("the FAME school"), and the fourth attended NEST+M - all of my children went to "good" schools as described above. But it took a lot of work, research, and creative thinking to find the right place for each of them.

In my opinion, the NYC DOE has not shown any ability or care in rolling out strategies for implementing policies of any kind. Everything the DOE does seems to be governed by politics and vendors selling the flavor-of-the-month textbooks or curricula which are purchased at fraudulent prices both above and below the table at DOE headquarters.

In blunt terms, NYC DOE policy is focused on political, and not educational, outcomes and Chancellor Carranza's focus is anything other than what is best for the children enrolled in NYC schools. He fits his policies to his needs (which seems to be a "children last" program) and not what the very diverse population of kids in NYC public schools want or need.

In the past year Chancellor Carranza has been attempting a minority-based coup where he replaces white DOE Deputies with people of minority backgrounds. He is being sued by several Superintendents.

Even if he claims he is not doing what is claimed in this lawsuit, the language of intent to discriminate is flowing through the DOE and the press is taking note, as can be seen in the article re-posted below published in the NY POST on October 1, 2019. Jackie Cody, a member of Community Education Council 22, seems to be buying into Carranza's poison.

Betsy Combier, betsy.combier@gmail.com
Editor, ADVOCATZ.com
Editor, NYC Rubber Room Reporter
Editor, Parentadvocates.org
Editor, New York Court Corruption
Editor, National Public Voice
Editor, NYC Public Voice
Editor, Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials

Carranza accused of ‘pitting parents against each other’ along racial lines
by Selim Algar, NYPOST, September 30, 2019

An African American member of a volunteer schools advisory board referred to Asians as “yellow folks” during a group email exchange with more than 100 people — leading one recipient to blame the “toxic racial environment” created by Chancellor Richard Carranza.

“The tone comes from the top,” fumed Lucas Liu, a member of the Community Education Council 3, which covers the Upper West Side and part of Harlem.

“I think this is representative of the environment Carranza has created. It’s a toxic racial environment pitting parents against each other.”

He also said that Carranza “has successfully intimidated white families into not speaking up by playing the race card, but failed to achieve the same success with Asian families.”

Carranza has repeatedly stirred controversy through a series of moves intended to increase diversity in the city’s schools and change the curriculum in favor of “culturally responsive sustaining education.”

Jackie Cody

Liu, who is Asian, saw red on Friday when Jackie Cody of Community Education Council 22 in southeast Brooklyn sent out a message in favor of eliminating the city’s specialized high school exams and “gifted and talented” programs.

“To be blunt, certain Whites and certain Yellow folks on this list serv continue to focus on a very narrow view and misunderstanding that what they’re advocating for is damaging to White and Yellow children as well!” wrote Cody, who is African American.

“You see, perhaps if we bring to the forefront that 90% of white and 85% of yellow children are not accepted into Specialized High Schools nor G&T Programs, there’d be a better acknowledgment and understanding of the need to gut this system.”

 In response, Liu fired off a message expressing outrage at Cody’s choice of words.

“Thank you Jackie. Your use of a racial slur … speaks for itself,” he wrote.

 The back-and-forth led the administrators of the “Yahoo Groups” list to announce on Saturday that they were changing its protocols so that only a handful of moderators would be able to send messages to the entire group.

“Some of the threads have become deeply offensive and toxic for many members,” wrote Shino Tanikawa and NeQuan McLean, both members of Mayor Bill de Blasio’s School Diversity Advisory Group.

“While we asked that members reply only to the sender and NOT to the listserve, this rule has not been followed diligently.”

Liu said Monday that “the term ‘yellow’ is clearly a derogatory term.”

“I don’t know if she deliberately put this out there in that way,” he said.

“But I would say that there are some terms you don’t use no matter what, and ‘yellow’ is one of them.”

Cody insisted she meant no offense, saying, “I had no intent like that at all.”

“We are split up into colors these days. Black people are black, brown people are brown, white people are white,” she said.

“My only purpose was trying to get people to understand that every child is gifted and talented. Once you really authentically understand that, things will be seen in a different perspective.”

Department of Education spokesman Will Mantell said in an email, “This was an unacceptable comment made by one parent on a message board, and it has nothing to do with the Chancellor.”

Additional reporting by Bruce Golding

Additional reading:

Department of Education head announces restructuring plan

Schools Chancellor Richard Carranza accused of demoting admins because they were white

DOE official who sued Carranza for ‘white bias’ gets promotion — in Westchester

$90 million lawsuit: 'Toxic' whiteness purge at NYC

Bombshell suit claims Carranza’s ‘toxic’ whiteness purge cost DOE execs their jobs

Carranza's Book For New Teachers and The Essay "Dear White Teacher"

  So now, according to the NY POST, the NYC Department of Education Chancellor Richard Carranza is marketing a book with an essay for white teachers with the message:

"Don't be afraid to discipline black students"

Indeed, the NYPOST followed up by talking with Essay author Chrysanthius Lathan about her essay, and she is quoted as saying:

"Essay author Chrysanthius Lathan blasts white teachers who she says routinely send minority students to “teachers of color” for discipline — because they’re scared of being called racist."

In my opinion, Portland Oregon is a very different place than New York City, and what Ms. Lathan says is irrelevant to what is happening here in the Big Apple.

We know that teachers of ANY color or race are randomly selected to be charged with misconduct, discontinued, or railroaded into "ineffective ratings" because he or she disciplines a kid of ANY color. The sad truth is, NYC public schools are segregated, and all the students who attend - at least middle or upper grade students - know this. They see it. "White" kids get benefits that "black" children don't. Except for discipline. Any child of any color who assaults a teacher or peer will get maybe a short suspension, but that is it. The NYC DOE does not allow any teacher (unless this person is "liked" by someone higher up) to discipline ANY child.

But disciplining a black student is in a category all on its' own. Any teacher who tries it will be punished. One of the teachers I worked with at his 3020-a was assaulted by a student who was a well-known bully and gang member at the school. He was "allowed" to terrorize and harm anyone, including members of staff. My client did the right thing: he filed a police report, then reported the incident to the principal. He was charged with assaulting the student instead of the other way around, and another charge was revealing the boy's picture to the police.

We have looked at more than 1000 teacher tenure hearings and 3020-a Specifications, completed more than 107 arbitrations, and read and analyzed the cases of educators at all levels, content areas and licenses, looking for patterns and practices. The Department's secret policies are to never discipline any child, and to go after the educator/staff member who spoke up about an incident - even if this individual was completely innocent of any involvement.

The NY POST wrote:

"And, obviously, educators need to know that their superiors, all the way to the top, will back them up as long as they’re doing their job."

As it stands right now, we know that Superiors do not support a teacher, paraprofessional, or any other staff member, charged with misconduct because they must rely on the investigations which are done, allegedly, at the school level. (Our opinion: no one does an investigation within the Department). This is DOE policy. The only way the Superintendents get involved is if they put a call in to the investigator/principal/administrator saying that they want the process to stop (because they are related to the educator, or for political reasons).


See the story of Eileen Ghastin:

The Partnership of Bully Power and Media Can Convict a Teacher at 3020-a 

Betsy Combier, betsy.combier@gmail.com

Editor, ADVOCATZ.com

Editor, NYC Rubber Room Reporter
Editor, Parentadvocates.org
Editor, New York Court Corruption
Editor, National Public Voice
Editor, NYC Public Voice
Editor, Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials

Chancellor Richard Carranza

 New NYC teachers given book with essay titled ‘Dear White Teacher’
 By Carl Campanile, Selim Algar and Bruce Golding, Sept. 3, 2019

A cadre of newly hired teachers will report to city schools this week following orientation sessions where they were given a book that includes an essay titled “Dear White Teacher,” The Post has learned.

But unlike the Department of Education’s controversial “implicit bias” training — which, among other lessons, tells teachers that “racial equity” requires favoring black students over whites — the essay’s message is that white instructors should stop being afraid to discipline black students.

Essay author Chrysanthius Lathan blasts white teachers who she says routinely send minority students to “teachers of color” for discipline — because they’re scared of being called racist.

“My strength in the classroom does not come from my racial identity, and neither does yours,” wrote Lathan, a former teacher in Portland, Oregon, who now works as an educational consultant.

“It comes from the way we treat — and what we expect from — kids and families. It is time for you to take back the power in your classroom.”

Lathan also gives blunt advice to the white teachers she says “live in fear of their good faith actions being labeled as racist.”

Essay author Chrysanthius Lathan blasts white teachers who she says routinely send minority students to “teachers of color” for discipline — because they’re scared of being called racist.

“My strength in the classroom does not come from my racial identity, and neither does yours,” wrote Lathan, a former teacher in Portland, Oregon, who now works as an educational consultant.

“It comes from the way we treat — and what we expect from — kids and families. It is time for you to take back the power in your classroom.”

Lathan also gives blunt advice to the white teachers she says “live in fear of their good faith actions being labeled as racist.”

“You need to find that bone in your body that tends to recoil when it comes time to deal with people of color —- and purposely straighten it back out,” she wrote.

By contrast, the $23 million, “implicit bias” training mandated by schools Chancellor Richard Carranza included consultant Darnisa Amante’s justification that a middle-class black student would “have less access and less opportunities” over the course of a lifetime than a poor white classmate, according to sources who heard her say it.

A veteran Queens teacher said DOE educators were getting “a lot of mixed messages.”

“On the one hand, we’re told that we have these implicit biases that we need to work on to get rid of,” the teacher said.

“And on the other hand, certain teachers are told that race is incredibly important in everything we do. It’s like: don’t focus on race, but focus on race.”

“Dear White Teacher” is among more than 50 essays in “The New Teacher Book,” a 324-page manual published by Rethinking Schools, a Milwaukee-based nonprofit.

Copies of the $24.95 paperback were included in some of the tote bags given to the 2,700 new teachers who attended two days of orientation last week ahead of Thursday’s start of the 2019-20 school year.

Several readings take aim at traditional measures of learning, with titles including “Time to Get Off the Testing Train,” “Beyond Test Scores” and “My Dirty Little Secret: I Don’t Grade Student Papers.”

There are also repeated attacks on charter schools — which purportedly pose a “fundamental threat to the hope of sustaining a multicultural democracy” — and sections that urge new teachers to get involved in their unions and join activist groups.

A veteran city educator who took part in last week’s orientation sessions was outraged that the book was distributed, saying it was “of no practical use.”

A DOE spokesman said the book contained “valuable strategies for new teachers and received positive reviews from several leading educators,” but also maintained that “its views represent the book’s authors, not the DOE.”

De Blasio and Carranza should heed the wisdom of ‘Dear White Teacher’

 NYPOST Editorial Board, September 3, 2019

Included in a book for new teachers this year at orientation is an essay entitled “Dear White Teacher,” written by a veteran black 8th-grade educator named Chrysanthius Lathan. She says that far too many white teachers send students to her for discipline, because “many whites live in fear of their good faith actions being labeled as racist.”

Hmm. Now why would a New York City teacher fear that in 2019? Maybe because they’re getting regular training in how they are all racist, and if they don’t see it then they’re simply full of “implicit bias.”

Perhaps because Chancellor Richard Carranza seems unable to talk about anything except race, and how the entire system is racist, biased and so on. And because Mayor Bill de Blasio (when he’s in town, anyway) backs him up every step of the way.
And because the Department of Education continues to push ever-weaker discipline codes, and ever more reliance on penalty-free “restorative justice,” in a tail-chasing effort to make discipline statistics more racially balanced. Why wouldn’t teachers be scared to run a disciplined classroom?

You have to wonder if “Dear White Teacher” slipped through without Carranza’s notice, since it offers a grounded, sensible and realistic look not just at racial issues, but at the basics of teaching itself. You need to be fair and you need to be involved, Lathan says, and white teachers shouldn’t be afraid of giving time-outs to students of color.

“My strength in the classroom does not come from my racial identity, and neither does yours,” she sums up at the end. “It comes from the way we treat — and what we expect from — kids and families. It is time for you to take back the power in your classroom.”

Absolutely: Classroom control is the threshold skill of teaching; if you’re not in charge, you can’t do anything.

Lathan was inspired to write after realizing that (too) many white teachers in her Portland, Ore., school were overrelying on her for help in communicating to black parents.

She was fine being a source of “advice and understanding regarding students and families of color” — but not on being relied upon solely. So she had a chat with some of her regular discipline cases, who told her the other teachers were “scared of us and our parents, too,” whereas “You’re not scared of us. We’re scared of you, though … scared in a good way. We’re scared to disappoint you.”

“Students spoke of my familiar demeanor and tone, my classroom routines, my allowance of personal space when needed, my low tolerance for work avoidance or refusal, my refusal to kick students out but instead expecting them to work hard, my classroom environment of respect for one another, and so on. All of this sounded like what any good teacher would do.”

Indeed — even if each teacher has to find his or her own effective balance of firmness, empathy, charisma and so on when it comes to winning students’ respect.

You have to wonder if Carranza and de Blasio believe, as Lathan does: “There’s no doubt that we need more teachers of color in our schools, but we also have to deal with the situation that exists today.”

Having seen white teachers “freeze” all too often, she offers some tips along with her “take back the power in your classroom” demand. And new teachers in every school can certainly use more specific advice from veteran educators of all colors.

And, obviously, educators need to know that their superiors, all the way to the top, will back them up as long as they’re doing their job.

Don’t undermine teachers. Let them do that job.