J
jones
Guest
I am a certified teacher working at an alternative school in a rural area of the state of Ohio. Two days ago, I was threatened with violence by a student. I do believe that this student is capable of carrying out the threat and have verbally informed my supervisor of this, yet she is reluctant to remove him from my classroom. At the moment, we are on a break. Classes will resume January 3, 2000. I am wondering if there are any legal remedies I can pursue should my supervisor decide to keep the student in my class.
The school I work at is a grant-funded alternative school program for students who have been expelled or put on long-term suspension from their home schools. The classroom is located in a private human services agency. Right now I am the only teacher. My class consists of five students ranging in age from 12-15, grades 6-9 (the one who threatened me is a 15-year-old ninth grader -- he outweighs me by roughly sixty pounds). I manage each student's entire curriculum.
At the moment, I am the only adult in the room (although there are adults working in offices in the same hallway), and I supervise the students from 8am to about 2.30pm. I eat lunch with the students, and because I can't leave them alone, I take no breaks, not even to get a drink of water or use the restroom. On most days, I get approximately 30 minutes of time away from the students during which they are supervised by another adult. Some days, however, I do not even get that.
Given the difficult nature of the students in my class and the current conditions under which I must be with them constantly, tense situations are not infrequent. The student who threatened me is slated to be in the program for two more weeks (starting 1/3/00), after which he will re-enter his home school. Under these conditions, I believe the possibility of my being physically attacked is distinct if this student is not removed.
Despite the adverse conditions right now, I actually enjoy most aspects of this job and do not wish to quit. But I am apprehensive about this situation. I believe the reason my supervisor is reluctant to take the student out of the program is because this is a pilot program administered by her for which she helped write the grant proposal. Should the student be removed, the reputation of her project may suffer. The private agency also collects a daily fee from the home school for each student present.
Again, my question is: are there any legal remedies I can pursue to keep this student out of my class? I do not feel safe when he is in the room. Is it possible for me to keep my job but refuse to teach while the student is in my class?
At present, I am not a member of the union. I am trying to remedy this, but I have been told that my current position may not allow me to join.
---jones
The school I work at is a grant-funded alternative school program for students who have been expelled or put on long-term suspension from their home schools. The classroom is located in a private human services agency. Right now I am the only teacher. My class consists of five students ranging in age from 12-15, grades 6-9 (the one who threatened me is a 15-year-old ninth grader -- he outweighs me by roughly sixty pounds). I manage each student's entire curriculum.
At the moment, I am the only adult in the room (although there are adults working in offices in the same hallway), and I supervise the students from 8am to about 2.30pm. I eat lunch with the students, and because I can't leave them alone, I take no breaks, not even to get a drink of water or use the restroom. On most days, I get approximately 30 minutes of time away from the students during which they are supervised by another adult. Some days, however, I do not even get that.
Given the difficult nature of the students in my class and the current conditions under which I must be with them constantly, tense situations are not infrequent. The student who threatened me is slated to be in the program for two more weeks (starting 1/3/00), after which he will re-enter his home school. Under these conditions, I believe the possibility of my being physically attacked is distinct if this student is not removed.
Despite the adverse conditions right now, I actually enjoy most aspects of this job and do not wish to quit. But I am apprehensive about this situation. I believe the reason my supervisor is reluctant to take the student out of the program is because this is a pilot program administered by her for which she helped write the grant proposal. Should the student be removed, the reputation of her project may suffer. The private agency also collects a daily fee from the home school for each student present.
Again, my question is: are there any legal remedies I can pursue to keep this student out of my class? I do not feel safe when he is in the room. Is it possible for me to keep my job but refuse to teach while the student is in my class?
At present, I am not a member of the union. I am trying to remedy this, but I have been told that my current position may not allow me to join.
---jones