Cherry Hill Teacher There’s Nothing Bizarre About Black Men Being Criminals and Going To Jail, Following a report of a high school English teacher allegedly bullying students and making racist comments in class, a spokeswoman for the Cherry Hill school district on Wednesday stated officials are investigating the matter.
According to a report on Cherry Hill Patch, parents of students at Cherry Hill High School spoke out at Tuesday night’s Cherry Hill Board of Education meeting stating they have been stymied at several points while trying to file harassment, intimidation and bullying (HIB) complaints against the teacher.
According to Susan Bastnagle, public information officer for the Cherry Hill school district, HIB policies apply to teacher-student interactions just as they apply to those between students.
However, that is the opposite of what the parents say they have been told by school officials.
Bastnagle stated Wednesday Principal John O’Breza first heard the complaints against the teacher from the parents on March 4. The parents then contacted the school’s central administration on March 13.
“The affirmative action officer, the building principal and the central administrative staff are currently investigating and looking into the parents’ allegations,” said Bastnagle.
She later added, “The [HIB] policies are applicable to staff as well as students.”
Page two of the district’s policy on harassment, intimidation and bullying, labeled Policy 5131, states: “The Cherry Hill Board of Education expects pupils, staff members and community to treat one another with civility and respect, and will not tolerate acts of harassment, intimidation or bullying.
“Like other disruptive or violent behaviors, this conduct interferes with an individual’s ability to learn and a school’s ability to educate its pupils in a safe environment.”
However, Bastnagle declined to comment on what kind of action the board could take if the parents’ accusations prove true.
“I can’t speak on generalities,” she said. “Just like with any HIB case, it all depends on the circumstances of the events.”
According to reports, the Cherry Hill High School East parents claimed the English has wielded discrimination and insults at students.
One specific example given was a comment allegedly made my the teacher during a vocabulary lesson last month. Using the word “bizarre” in an example sentence, the parents claim the teacher said, “There is nothing bizarre about black men being criminals and going to jail.”
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