Teacher blogger fired.

[proud2BlibKansan]

This is a heartbreaking story. I've read Randy's blog for years. Here's the full report.

http://rturner229.blogspot.com/2013/06/full-text-of-joplin-school-boards.html

[NYC_SKP]

1. Well, they wanted him gone and he gave them a way.

Assuming the findings of fact in the complaint are truthful.

I haven't read his book or seen his blog before, but it he was inviting middle school students to read material of a sexual nature, even of an educational nature, then he's giving the board a gun with which to shoot him.

[proud2BlibKansan]

2. There was a link on one of his blogs

He has several blogs. The one with the lowest number of readers has a link to his book. It's not the blog he set up for his class and he never gave the link to his kids.

He was also accused of using his students' essays in a book about the tornado without permission from their parents. After he produced the signed permission notes, the district changed that accusation and claimed he had not received permission from the district to publish the students' essays. But he says his principal knew about the book and never told him he shouldn't put the essays in it. And even though he had spent several thousand dollars of his own money to have the book published, and has not made that money back in sales, he was accused of profiting from his students' work.

It's a lot of bullshit and far fetched accusations. It's obvious they were looking for a reason to fire him.

I have a couple friends who teach in Joplin and another who quit last year. They have all complained about the climate of fear and disrespect from administration.

This is also proof that if they really want to fire you, they will find a reason. Tenure just means you get a hearing.

I will post the newspaper report in another reply.

[NYC_SKP]

3. It definitely has the smell of a witch hunt.

I've seen this up close and personal and it's messed up.

[proud2BlibKansan]

5. Several red flags

I teach elementary school so it's not an issue for me personally, but I would NEVER befriend a student on Facebook. I have a couple former students who have found me on Facebook and I accepted their friend requests but they are in their 20s and 30s. If I taught kids who are old enough to be on Facebook, I wouldn't friend them.

That being said, I am a Facebook friend of Randy's and never once have I seen him post anything I would consider inappropriate or not suitable for kids to read. I've also read his conversations he's had with his students and I don't see any problems there. So the whole Facebook angle seems bizarre. The district is reaching on this one.

They wanted him gone and were determined to find a reason. It could happen to any of us. That's the scary part.

[FBaggins]

6. The charges seem to say that isn't true

That the blog was specifically for students

This blog is designed to provide students and former students from  Mr. Randy Turner's communication arts class at East Middle School 1n Joplin, Mo., an opportunity to discuss issue that affect teens and  society as  a whole.

If he didn't do anything wrong, he sure gave them all the rope they needed to silence him.

[proud2BlibKansan]

7. He has more than one blog

He does have a blog set up for his class but his book isn't linked at that blog.

[FBaggins]

8. I have no doubt.

But he still screwed up.

As you said, he shouldn't have facebook/twitter friends who are students (and apparently he linked the book there as well). The blog in question is reportedly linked on sites that students do use (if not his classroom site). His subject area would seem to overlap these technologies - so he should know better.

We both know that the reality isn't as important as the perception and how they can use it. He started a blog that clearly says it's for his students. If the blog had died out, he shouldn't have been posting things there (this assumes that the book is as they describe it... perhaps it isn't) or he should have re-designated the site for some other purpose (and not linked to it from sites students use). He can't make a legal defense that it isn't intended for students when he labeled it explicitly as that. He can make a rational/personal defense (as you do here)... but that relies on the the other side being willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.

He also really screwed up with the publication/copyright of student material without parental consent. I also seriously can't figure out why he would broadcast a recording that he wasn't allowed to make (and knew it). If he thought they were going to do something illegal (or that proved it was a witch hunt), I could understand it... but absent such damning evidence in his own defense, I don't see how he could be so dense as to hand them yet another bullet.

Having said all of that... to me the whole thing boils down to this: If the administration wanted to keep him, there's enough wiggle room and "explain-ability" to slap his wrist and keep him on staff. If they wanted to get rid of him... he gave them all of the ammunition they needed.

[proud2BlibKansan]

11. He did have parental consent.

He even posted a picture on his blog of the signed consent forms. After that, the district changed their allegation to one that said he didn't have district approval to publish student work. That was also a false allegation.

I agree about recording his meeting where he was suspended. But I feel pretty certain I would have done the same thing.

[FBaggins]

15. Not really

Last edited Sat Jun 8, 2013, 07:58 PM - Edit history (1)

Having consent from some parents for use in a different book is not good enough (or even close).

 After that, the district changed their allegation to one that said he didn't have district approval to publish student work

Also untrue. It may have been where they added additional charges... but they never removed the claim that he lacked parental consent... since they found him guilty of that (not that guilty is the right word).

35.    Mr. Turner did not obtain permission from parents to publish their child's works in Scars from the Tornado.
36. Mr. Turner obtained signed permission slips from approximately half of  the parents whose children had works published in Scars .fom the Tornado. That permission slip reads in part:We would  like to include work  written by your  child  in an  upcoming book, Eagle Pride, being written about the Joplin Tornado and our 2011- 2012 school year.(Exhibits 24 and 27.)
37. Nowhere in the permission slip does it rcfer to Scars.from the Tornado. Nowhere in the permission slip docs it indicate that Mr . Turner was personally publishing a book.
38. Mr. Turner produced no permission slips for any book for approximately half of the students whose work was published in Scars from the Tornado. (Exhibit 27.)

If he actually had consent forms from all of the parents for use in that book... he would have an easy case against them

But I feel pretty certain I would have done the same thing.

Yep... and if they had said something damning like "I told you that I would get rid of you some day... and now I win" then I could see using it. But there wasn't any advantage to using it and it made him look dishonest (and obviously provided more ammunition for them). 

[proud2BlibKansan]

16. No really.

The allegation that he didn't have consent is false.

Administrators lie. Like a rug.

[FBaggins]

17. The documents are in the record

They either say what the decision says they say... or they don't.

It would be a simple lawsuit for him to win if he actually has a stack of parental permission slips for all of the student work used in his book and the permission clearly includes a self-published and copyrighted work. It would be an open and shut case if they put into evidence documents that so clearly contradict their finding of fact... an easy wrongful termination suit for the union to win for him.

When does he indicate that such a claim will be brought to court?

On edit - Another of his blog posts admits that he doesn't have permission slips for all of them and that they were "poorly written". He believes that they must have fallen out of the folder at some point.

If you're going to publish minors' work in your own book, you need explicit parental consent for that (not just for publication) and you need explicit administrative permission (not "I mentioned it more than once and he didn't say no&quot .

Administrators lie. Like a rug.

Some do... and so do some teachers. In this case I don't have anything to go on except what I read in his blog... and he's the only one that I've seen lie so far.

[mbperrin]

21. Why would wanting an accurate recording of a meeting be seen as dishonest?

1. I would not talk to any admin without my attorney present.
2. No recording? No meeting. See ya. Only dishonest people fear an accurate record.

I have a bit more cavalier attitude. probably because I am litigious by nature, and I was in management in banks and the oilfield before I came to teaching.

[FBaggins]

22. Nobody said that it was.

But indicating that you're not recording when you are is dishonest.

You can hear him trying to dodge the question... but he clearly has the intent to deceive.

[mbperrin]

23. I can't tell if you are faulting him or not.

So I'll stop.

[FBaggins]

24. I can't tell either. :)

As I said earlier in the thread... I might have recorded it too if I suspected them of bad motives (as he apparently does) - or thought that I might catch them doing something illegal (or that would otherwise help my case).

I don't think that I would be able to lie about it if told that the rules forbid it and they straight-up told me to turn off such devices (at least I hope I wouldn't)... but what I certainly wouldn't do is "out" my violation by putting the recording online when it didn't show evidence of such behavior (and thus only added to my trouble).

[proud2BlibKansan]

4. Newspaper article:

June 7, 2013
Joplin School Board terminates Randy Turner’s teaching contract

JOPLIN, Mo. — In a 7-0 vote, the Joplin Board of Education terminated the teaching contract of Randy Turner, a communication arts teacher at East Middle School, in a closed session Thursday night.

<skip>

In a footnote to the board’s decision about immoral conduct, the board said Turner was not charged with immoral conduct for engaging in inappropriate relations with a student. The charges against Turner specifically indicate that he was charged with immoral conduct because he had provided and promoted obscene material containing graphic depiction of sexuality to children in a book he authored called “No Child Left Alive.’’ Turner described the book as a satire on the state of public education in the United States.

The footnote states: “Although the administration testified that the circumstances surrounding the situation caused them to have a heightened level of concern during their investigation, the administration indicated that they found no evidence that Turner had engaged in inappropriate relations with a student. The resulting connection by innuendo was made by Turner’s counsel, not by the administration.’’

During Turner’s termination hearing, the school district’s human resources director, Tina Smith, said she interviewed students in Turner’s classes, and inferred that he might be “grooming” his students, a reference to behavior often exhibited by child predators.

Turner was accused of tagging by name proportionally more girls than boys on his Facebook page by Klista Rader, director of information technology for the district. She said that “stood out as odd.”

<skip>

No parents or students testified against Turner in terms of his moral character or his ability to teach.

more . . . http://www.joplinglobe.com/topstories/x157726465/Joplin-School-Board-terminates-Randy-Turner-s-teaching-contract

[duffyduff]

9. It's a rigged hearing. Par for the course.

Administrators can make up any kind of charges against teachers they don't like. I'll bet those kids said that against him; the HR person probably coerced them to say that garbage or she just fabricated it, most likely the latter.

Just like what happened in my termination hearing when the district's "witnesses" lied under oath about me. Of course districts can suborn perjury because perjury doesn't exist in those sham tribunals.

[duffyduff]

10. This comment following the blog post sums it up

When I first started teaching over 30 years ago, a veteran teacher told me there is no job security in this business because if they really want to get rid of you, they can and will do so by accusing you of violating board policy. Most of us violate one board policy or another without even realizing it. Late to school? That's a violation of board policy. Forget to clip on that ID badge? You're violating board policy.

So it doesn't really matter what you did or did not do and it doesn't really matter what they are accusing you of doing or whether they are telling the truth or not. They wanted you gone. I would be willing to bet they made their minds up a long time ago that you needed to go and they just waited for that inevitable violation of board policy.

Teachers have NO job security in this country and fewer rights than a McDonald's worker. It doesn't matter whether or not the teacher has "tenure," which is a misnomer.

[proud2BlibKansan]

12. Bingo

[proud2BlibKansan]

13. A message to the Joplin community and my students: The system works

The system works.

That I write these words may surprise those who are aware that my employer of the last 10 years, the Joplin R-8 Board of Education, voted 7-0 to terminate my contract Thursday.

The decision did not surprise me. I was fully aware that teachers rarely survive termination hearings. This hearing, not permanent employment, is the only thing that tenure offers, despite the protestations of the so-called “reformers,” who insist it is keeping thousands of bad teachers in the classrooms.

Not a single parent or student complained about me. The primary witnesses were six administrators. Though the charges against me had nothing to do with any kind of pedophilia, the district’s human resources manager insisted that when she interviewed girls about me, they were so supportive of me that she saw signs of “grooming.” My lawyer vigorously objected to the woman’s loaded language, but it was allowed to remain on the record.

more . . . http://rturner229.blogspot.com/2013/06/a-message-to-joplin-community-and-my.html?spref=fb

[duffyduff]

14. And of course those six administrators lied.

I am not being sarcastic; administrators lie all the time. Administrative hearings aren't encumbered with the same restrictions as are other legal proceedings regarding suborning perjury, committing perjury, etc. Administrators can't be criminally charged for what they say and do in these sham hearings.

[Reader Rabbit]

18. The ability to lie with a straight face is a prerequisite for adminsitrators.

I can't tell you how many meetings I've sat in over my career, and an administrator has made blatantly false statements with the clear expectation that we're going to believe him/her instead of our own eyes, ears, and experience. Only two principals I've worked for respected their staff enough to state the non-politic truth, and both of those individuals retired long ago. Today's administrators are politicians, not educators, so lying is part and parcel of their job.

[duffyduff]

19. They lie like rugs and are protected to the hilt

We know as teachers and former teachers that we do not have anything approaching "lifetime employment" in our jobs but administrators are virtually impossible to fire. In the bigger districts, they merely get moved around when they screw up.

After all, the people who hire these dolts don't want to look bad themselves for having hired them, so they have to be protected at all costs.

Almost all of the good principals left the field before the "reforms" took place. Now principals are made up mostly of idiots and sociopaths.

[proud2BlibKansan]

20. Exactly.

I could fill a blog. We should start one called "Admin Lies".

[Smarmie Doofus]

25. +1. n/t

[Smarmie Doofus]

26. This guy is a TRAITOR! To the Joplin School Board and all that it stands for!

To everything that's pure, good and wholesome.


Sorry.. I'm all caught up in the "Snowden is a traitor" threads and had to let that out.

(Hey ... calling someone a "traitor" is fun. I have a not unpleasant tingly sensation. I've got goosebumps! Try it.)

Not unrelatedly... and somewhat more seriously... did you ever notice the parallels between the arbitrary and unscrupulous actions of some school boards and those prerogatives usually claimed for themselves by sovereign states?