Going Public

I have been thinking about the suggestion to publicly expose the principal of my school on this blog. I have visited the websites and blogs of other teachers who do just that. They use their own names and the names of principals and assistant principals. (See http://www.teacherabuse.com/). I applaud the courage and honesty of these teachers. However, I have decided not to follow their example for now, and I will give my reasons.

1. This is not just about Principal S.T. vs. Me. This is about Bloomberg/Klein vs. every teacher and student in the New York City Department of Education. What is happening to me is happening throughout the five boroughs. I feel that using real names would divert attention away from the pervasiveness of the problem.

2. The Principal involves children in her war against me without regard for their reputation. Take for example the incident involving Randy R.. I wouldn’t be writing about it if she weren’t trying to use it as evidence of how unprofessional I am. Every 8th grader in my school knows all about the Randy R. incident. They all know his real name. He’s famous. Anyone who knew the name of my school could stand outside at dismissal time and engage in conversation with some of the 8th graders. It would take this person about two minutes to find out the real name of Randy R..

3. Visitors to the blog should be able to give their opinions without worrying about being held responsible for comments about a real person. For example, no one can be sued for saying that Principal S.T. is a T-Rex Bitch.

4. . Let children have their childhood. Without real names, there is little risk of students finding their way to “Untamed Teacher”. Adults who use children in their wars with other adults are child abusers. Unethical administrators like Principal S.T. are using children to do the dirty work of harassing and framing teachers. Most teachers, including myself, try to protect students from Bloom/Klein fallout.

However, I do agree that this Principal should be reported and held responsible for what she has done. I have already sent letters to Union Officials and to the Chancellor’s Office to no avail. I have decided to report my concerns to the publicly elected officials who represent this neighborhood. I live here and I teach here. I can walk over to my council person’s office and hand-deliver a letter.

The only thing left to do is to write the letter.