The story of one teacher who was suspended over images displayed in a slideshow presentation has been sweeping the internet after she recently reached a $100,000 settlement with the school district that suspended her.
Teaching can be an incredibly difficult job.
From having to constantly meet shifting targets, to maintaining the focus and attention of around 25 kids at a time, teaching is a highly demanding job. It is also a job where your every action can be scrutinised.
One teacher at Charlotte Anderson Elementary recently came under unnecessary scrutiny.
Stacy Bailey, a two-time Teacher of the Year winning teacher at Charlotte Anderson Elementary, was suspended back in 2017 after the school district, “received complaints from parents about Ms. Bailey discussing her sexual orientation with elementary-aged students,” according to a press release from the school district .
The “complaints” refer to Ms Bailey showing a picture of her and her partner.
Baily had included an image in her slideshow presentation that was of her and her then-fiancé, one Julie Vazquez.
Bailey had mentioned to the children that Ms. Vazquez was her “future wife”.
The photo in question was of the pair dressed up as characters from Finding Nemo.
One parent had complained to the school district that Bailey showing an image of her with her fiancé was promoting a “homosexual agenda”.
Bailey pointed out that the parent’s complaint was baseless.
Speaking earlier this week, Bailey explained:
“When a straight teacher happily announces that she and her husband are expecting a baby to her elementary class, is she saying something inappropriate to very young and impressionable students? Is she announcing her sexual orientation? Is she presenting her life in a way that promotes her political beliefs? Of course not. She’s simply sharing facts about her life,” reported Buzzfeed News .
Bailey filed a discrimination lawsuit against Mansfield Independent School District in 2018.
Bailey has described what happened to her as a “nightmare” and questioned why it is okay for heterosexual teachers to talk about their families.
“What happened to me is most gay teachers’ worst nightmare […] Why aren’t straight teachers afraid to talk about their families? Why do they feel comfortable to have a picture of their family on their desk without questioning their safety?” Bailey told the Texas Tribune .
MISD must now pay Bailey $100,000.
The school district must also, under the terms of the settlement, remove the suspension from Bailey’s record.
Furthermore, the school district staff must also take mandatory training on LGBTQ+ issues.
RELATED STORIES
Bailey will be donating $10,000 to charity.
$10,000 of the $100,000 settlement will go towards a charity for LGBTQ+ students.
Bailey’s attorney will also donate $10,000 of her portion of the settlement money to the Human Rights Campaign.
Hopefully, this sort of discrimination will not happen in the future.
Bailey hopes that her story will show other school districts that this kind of discrimination will not stand. In her own words, talking to Buzzfeed News, Bailey said:
“If you are a school district that thinks you can bully a gay teacher out of their job, I hope you remember my name and I hope you think twice.”
h/t: Buzzfeed News
