Teacher secretly recorded injecting his religious beliefs into classroom discussions
A Kearney, New Jersey teacher has been secretly recorded injecting his religious beliefs into classroom discussions. David Paszkiewicz, an eleventh grade history teacher at Kearney High School, was taped by student Matthew LaClair telling his class that evolution and the Big Bang were not scientific, dinosaurs were aboard Noah’s ark, and only Christians have a place in heaven. "If you reject his gift of salvation, then you know where you belong," Mr. Paszkiewicz was recorded saying of Jesus. "He did everything in his power to make sure that you could go to heaven, so much so that he took your sins on his own body, suffered your pains for you, and he’s saying, ‘Please, accept me, believe.’ If you reject that, you belong in hell." School officials claim they have taken "corrective action" since Matthew filed his complaint. "I think he’s an excellent teacher," says Kearney Principal Al Somma. "As far as I know, there have never been any problems in the past." Most of the community has shown support for the teacher. Matthew has received a death threat, which was handled by police, and criticism from classmates. Some think Matthew violated Mr. Paszkiewicz’s rights. In a letter to the local newspaper, a former student said Matthew was "ignoring the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, which gives every citizen the freedom of religion." While others contend Matthew baited the teacher with religious questions, he insists his comments were in response to statements made by the teacher.
"This is extremely rare for a teacher to get this blatantly evangelical," says Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State. Even some organizations known for their advocacy of religious rights are hesitant to support Mr. Paszkiewicz. "It’s proselytizing, and the courts have been pretty clear you can’t do that," says John W. Whitehead, president of the Rutherford Institute. "You can’t step across the line and proselytize, and that’s what he’s done here." Matthew’s family wrote four letters to the district asking for an apology and for the teacher to correct any false statements he had made in class, particularly those related to science. His father is considering filing a lawsuit claiming his son’s First Amendment and civil rights were violated. Kenneth J. Lindenfelser, the school district’s attorney, declines to discuss Mr. Paszkiewicz specifically, but notes that when a complaint comes in about a teacher, it is investigated, and then the department leader works with the teacher to correct any inappropriate behavior. The teacher is monitored, and his or her evaluation could be noted, he says, adding that if these steps do not work, the teacher can be reprimanded, suspended or, eventually, fired. As for the request that the teacher correct his statements that conflict with the district’s science curriculum, Mr. Lindenfelser says, "Sometimes, the more you dwell on the issue, the more you continue the issue. Sometimes, it’s better to stop any inappropriate behavior and move on." He also emphasizes that the district’s actions have succeeded, as the family has not reported any continued violations.
New York Times
By Tina Kelley
[Full story]
[Editor’s Note: The issue of a school board’s authority to regulate teacher classroom speech is currently before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in Mayer v. Monroe County Community School Corporation. See below.]
[NSBA School Law pages on teacher speech]