Quote:
Following a meeting later Friday with Schools Superintendent Gary P. McCartney, who told her she was not fired, she had intended to return to teach yesterday.
However, she changed her plans yesterday and hired an attorney to plead her case after McCartney distributed to district staff and the media his version of events.
His statement, he explained, was in response to "her aggressive efforts to get herself national media attention."
Pallai-Diaz told her story Sunday on "Good Morning America," on ABC, and later, she appeared on "The O'Reilly Factor" on the Fox News Network.
The problem was never the picture, according to McCartney, ". . . but rather a zealous misuse of seventh and eighth grade student instructional time."
According to his version of events, she once told students she was "glad they were not old enough to vote." She has also been accused of telling a student, "You should be ashamed to be a Democrat."
Pillai-Diaz denied saying anything of the sort. "You would have to be incredibly stupid to say those things to a student," she said, adding "I don't talk politics with the kids."
She explained she changed her mind about returning to the classroom because of the prejudicial nature of McCartney's version of events. "I don't how I can go to that school again after he distorted everything and sent (the letter) to all the teachers," she said, while waiting to tape her interview in the New York studio of "The O'Reilly Factor."
Interviewed yesterday, McCart-ney said if Pillai-Diaz stopped making political statements he would allow her to return to the classroom and even return the picture to the bulletin board, telling her, "I encourage you to do so."
McCartney said parents had e-mailed Principal Jim Warfel, concerned about the nature of Pillai-Diaz's passion for politics in the classroom.
The controversy was elevated Thursday on back-to-school night, when three parents got into a heated political discussion with Pillai-Diaz.
She said yesterday the principal told her to "get out," which she interpreted as being fired. "When the principal says get your stuff and get out, what would you think?" she said.
After the confrontation with the principal she left the building. She returned to retrieve her belongings, accompanied by a police escort, which she requested for her own safety. She was joined by a union representative and they discussed the incident for two hours with McCartney and Warfel <a href="http://www.app.com/app/story/0,21625,1070288,00.html">http://www.app.com/app/story/0,21625,1070288,00.html</a>.
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A publicity photo of Bush and the first lady, displayed on a curriculum bulletin
board does not compare in appropriateness to uniform "face shots" of past
presidents displayed in a classroom for instructional purposes.
The teacher appears to be a publicity hound who has acted to inflame this
situation, by going to the local police for a protection escort, appearing on
national TV so quickly to publicize this and inflame the disagreement further,
and by hiring a lawyer instead of seeking representation from her union.
This is not worth a thread here. I hesitated to post anything because this
is nonsense and not about posting presidents' pictures in a classroom.
The photo she posted seems like the type commonly issued by the RNC
in fundraising mailers, but I can't be sure, now.