Teacher Sits Hispanic Students Outside in the Hot Sun like Dogs

Teacher removed from class over accusations
FWISD: Hispanic students say she punished them for missing school May 1



*actual children & school NOT PICTURED*

05:16 AM CDT on Tuesday, May 9, 2006
By TOYA LYNN STEWART / The Dallas Morning News


A Fort Worth elementary school teacher has been removed from the classroom after allegations related to her discipline of fifth-grade Hispanic students who missed a day of school last week.

Some parents of the students at T.A. Sims Elementary School said teacher Jan Shannon chastised their children for missing school on May 1. She made them sit outside in the sun and read for two hours without water or bathroom breaks, several parents said. They also allege that the teacher called the students derogatory names, including one that refers to those who crossed the border illegally.

The district declined to name the teacher, but a Jan Shannon is listed as a fifth-grade teacher on the school's Web site. She could not be reached for comment.

May 1 – known as Labor Day in Mexico and other Latin American countries – was the day when thousands of immigrants skipped school and work to participate in "Day of Action" rallies and voter registration drives across the U.S.

Barbara Griffith, spokeswoman for the Fort Worth school district, said she couldn't release information about the alleged incident because it's a personnel matter.

Ms. Griffith could confirm only that there was a pending investigation at the school.

"My daughter didn't go to school on Monday. She stayed home to work on a project" with a classmate, Aracelia Moreno said. "When they turned the project in on Tuesday, they were told they'd get zeroes because they missed school – even though the project was due on Wednesday."

Ms. Moreno said her daughter, Zayra Moreno, was told she would receive a zero "because they went to the stupid marches."

Ms. Moreno said she went to the school on Thursday to talk to Ms. Shannon and was told the teacher was not at school because she was under investigation, she said.

Ms. Moreno was also told that eight to 10 students were involved and that those students were asked by school administrators to write an account of what happened. The students' statements were similar, Ms. Moreno said.

Another parent, Virginia Aranda, said she was furious when she learned what happened after picking up her daughter, Adda Garza, from school that day and noticing the girl's sunburned face. She was even more angry when Adda told her that the teacher used a derogatory term several times.

"My daughter's American-born, and even if she wasn't, that's uncalled for," Ms. Aranda said, adding that the teacher should have known better.

"It's racism," she said. "She crossed the line."

The district wouldn't confirm whether the teacher had been suspended with pay or placed on paid administrative leave.

However, board policy states: "A teacher with a probationary or continuing contract may be suspended with pay or placed on administrative leave with pay by the superintendent during an investigation of alleged misconduct by the teacher or at any time the superintendent determines that the district's best interest will be served by the suspension or administrative leave."

Ms. Aranda said she was told one student's nose began bleeding and her head was aching while outside. The students tried to tell the teacher, but she made them return outside, Ms. Aranda said.

The ordeal was traumatic for the students and parents, Ms. Moreno said.

"I don't want her in the school," she said of Ms. Shannon. "She's a teacher. She's supposed to be teaching, not judging the students."

Ms. Aranda said she hopes Ms. Shannon doesn't return to the school – or any district.

"I won't be satisfied if she goes to another district," she said. "She needs to have her teaching certificate revoked."


Staff writer Stella M. Chávez contributed to this report