Goodrich-More than six months after being escorted from Oaktree Elementary School and put on a three-day, unpaid suspension over a letter she sent home with her students, fourth grade teacher Michelle LaRowe has been granted some vindication.
Following a Dec. 13 meeting with Superintendent Kimberly Hart as part of a level three collective grievance process, it was agreed that LaRowe is to be reimbursed pay lost over the suspension and disciplinary action will consist only of a written reprimand, to be removed from LaRowe’s record in May.
‘I wondered why it took six months to accomplish what we could have accomplished in June,? said LaRowe.
On Wednesday, Hart was unavailable for comment.
LaRowe said the issue centered around a 2005 meeting between Oaktree Elementary’s fourth grade teachers and then-principal Mike Ellis, regarding the teachers? request to do away with fourth grade camp. Camp was started at the behest of the fourth grade teachers 5 years ago, said LaRowe, with the understanding that when it no longer seemed feasible to attend, the teachers could choose to terminate the activity.
Ellis, who has since the incident been reassigned as assistant principal at the high school, declined to comment.
‘We were told from the very beginning (of the camp initiative) …that it was not a board decision (whether or not to continue going to the camp), (and) it was nothing to do with the superintendent. We decided at the end of the 2005 school year… not to pursue it in 2006,? said LaRowe.
‘A decision was turned over by the principal saying, ‘we’ll go with or without (the teachers), said LaRowe. ‘Two of the six teachers went. It was my decision not to go.?
To inform parents of her decision to abstain from attending the camp, LaRowe sent students home with a letter explaining the situation.
Following news of the letter, which administration said referenced union issues with the passages regarding the loss of instructional days and financial issues, LaRowe said she was notified of a disciplinary meeting to take place and allowing her time to obtain representation.
Michigan Education Association representative Dianne Bregenzer attended the meeting with LaRowe. ‘I come to make sure their rights are not being violated,? said Bregenzer.
LaRowe, who said she has had no prior disciplinary action against her at the school, said she was surprised at the meeting’s events.
‘They said ‘you’re suspended without pay for three days.? They asked if I had anything to say. I was shocked,? said LaRowe.
Bregenzer said in the opinion of the MEA, LaRowe’s contract was violated by the action, resulting in the filing of a grievance. ‘She had been unjustly disciplined,? said Bregenzer.
The teacher said she was then escorted down to her classroom to get her keys, and promptly escorted out the front of the school to her vehicle, in front of students waiting in the lobby.
‘I don’t think that anything I had to say (in the letter) was inappropriate. I think it was misinterpreted,? said LaRowe. ‘They thought I was talking about contract issues. That’s not what I was talking about.?
LaRowe said instead, the financial issues referenced were pertaining to the actual cost of attending camp, which she felt was becoming prohibitive. Additionally, she said the decision to refrain from attending the camp was made by the teachers prior to their learning of the shortened school year to come.
LaRowe said she thought the reaction to her letter was spurred by other written critiques of recent policies she had given to the administration.
When LaRowe rejoined her class after her suspension, she said no direct mention of the event was made. However, LaRowe said students had noticed her absence, and, upon hearing of removal from the building, had begun making their own assumptions. It was through this chain of gossip that LaRowe said parents received a number of miscommunications, some prompting outrage and concern over the mental state of their students? teacher.
Because she was not directly approached with these concerns, she was unable to address them head-on, said LaRowe.
And though she said the effects of that suspension may still echo in the community, LaRowe expressed relief that some closure has been obtained.
‘I was very relieved (following the decision)? relieved the situation was finally over with. As a teacher, your reputation means everything. The interest of my students is always in the front of my mind,? said LaRowe.
‘The grievance was resolved totally to our satisfaction,? agreed Bregenzer.
And if LaRowe had it all to do over again?
‘I still know that I did the right thing in telling parents ahead of time I was not going to go,? said LaRowe. However, LaRowe said she would not, in retrospect, spell out her reasoning in the letter, since that left her words open to misinterpretation.
‘My intentions,? said LaRowe, ‘were good, I think.?