Portelos Update: A Para for the Defense, DOE Pulls Race Card, Theresa Europe Sits in to Intimidate Hearing Officer

There was only fear of the administration. YES everyone is in fear of them, not Portelos. .. former Para, IS 49SI.

According to Shenkman, a para - with a high school education - and a parent with 5 kids of her own - is not qualified to make a judgement as to whether someone is a good teacher. What arrogance and elitism. ... Report from Portelos hearing, Dec. 18

I finally was able to attend the 14th day of the Portelos 3020a hearing after missing the last few. Today there will be another and more after the holidays. For DOE lawyers and subsidiaries: ka-ching - At the afternoon session there were 4 DOE lawyers taking part, including Slug in Chief, Theresa Europe, who was there to make sure DOE Legal Slugette, Jordana Shenkman, pulled the race card with vigor (she did). But that was in the afternoon.

I'll do a follow-up about the afternoon testimony where we watched in amusement (and horror) as DOE legal beagle Shenkman pulled the race card on a Portello witness, as they had previously tried to do on Portelos himself - (also pulling the anti-semitic card on him). Shenkman should never be allowed into a China shop.

One thing is clear from these hearings: The absolute incompetence of IS 49 SI principal Linda Hill who everyone at the DOE seems to know is incompetent but is being protected by assaulting Portelos, who once he came under attack struck back with a vengeance. It is that vengeance he is being charged with while they try to bury the attack on him. I'll get more into the weeds in future posts.

A Para for the Defense

First to the morning testimony of a very strong witness for Portelos, a District 75 para (initials CS) at IS 49 who has since transferred to another school, who stood up to every attempt by Shenkman to break her, including an attempt so clumsy we had to hold our sides to keep from laughing out loud.

CS was a management para who followed the children she worked with from class to class through the day (except gym).

On Portelos as a teacher

Worked with him every year. Judgement of him as a teacher – very impressed – always put nice spin on teaching – kids very attentive. He gave Dist. 75 kids extra attention – especially one child with extreme difficulties. The kids were always orderly and listened to him.
Colleague to colleague he was very easy to work with – he once did rocket ships in school yard and included me, making me feel very much part of the lesson.
CC: Was it remarkable to be included by a teacher? CS: Yes [P was different from other teachers in the way he treated paras as equals.]

Shenkman OBJECTIONS and Cross Examination on this point alone:
 - anything you saw a first yr probat tchr do is not relevant (referring to how he treated one special ed child years ago when P was a new teacher). Then this from Shenkman:

JS: Not part of your resp to observe or eval tchrs.

CS: No.

JS: What is your ed degree?

CS: None. HS diploma.
JS: Was it your job to pay attention to special needs students – your job to stay focused on them – get them started with work – [meaning she couldn't know what kind of teacher P was if she was focusing on her job]

CS: I always instructed to help all public school children not just mine.
JS: You saw P one per a day – 8 periods – for 7 per follow assigned student – you didn’t see P teach other 7 periods.

According to Shenkman, a para - with a high school education - and a CS is also a parent with 5 kids of her own - is not qualified to make a judgement as to whether someone is a good teacher. What arrogance and elitism.

Note to Jordana Shenkman: Paraprofessionals are education professionals with the ability to make a judgement as to what good teaching is.

Jordana Shenkman with less qualifications to judge a teacher's competency than CS feels perfectly free to judge Portelos as not competent to teach (as she tried to prove by calling a network curriculum support person who was sent in to do a hit job).


How principal Linda Hill treated the staff
This testimony was so strong on how Linda Hill has run IS 49. (When the hearing is over we will print the transcripts). If a teacher said good morning Hill would not respond. "It was that way from the day I set foot in the school. At first I though it was personal but I was told she treats everyone that way so get over it."

We needed help – kids hitting teachers, wallet stolen –and we can’t report it - teachers crying – fear – always the principal against us – I worked in other schools – administration and teachers always worked together.

When there was a problem did you speak to Hill?

"She was unapproachable – she locked herself in her office all day."

On Portelos as a colleague

Shenkman: Are you aware of people having nervous breakdowns over fear of P or crying in hall? People filing police reports for fear of P? 

CS: NO.

JS: You weren’t aware in fear of P stalking or following them? 

CS: There was only fear of the administration. YES everyone is in fear of them not Portelos.

On the April 2011 meeting where Portelos first spoke up about the safety issue:

CS: I wasn't at the meeting but the school was buzzing.
Did u hear what P did? He stood up and said things about security and safety of building? I said to him you are so young and naive – I knew there would be retaliation.
P told me – what do u mean? I spoke the truth.
But you opened can of worms – everyone should be backing you. I was very concerned he was going to be a target. He led everyone to be able to say something.

This was April 2011, 6 months before things began to blow up. And when they did in January 2012,

CS: I spoke to R(another para) – this is all because P spoke up at that (April 2011) meeting.

There's more to this testimony where Shenkman made an outrageous attempt to discredit CS, an attempt crude and truly disgusting. And how her D. 75 admins backed her all the way. Best to do that in a separate post.

And then there is the afternoon disgusting stuff where the hearing officer, maybe hoping to impress Theresa Europe, made an outrageous decision to allow a racist neo-Nazi publication that intentionally misquoted a Portelos witness into official evidence. Portelos lawyer Chris Callegy is usually a cool customer but in this case he was livid.

READ Portelos' latest post on his blog (he is gagged from commenting on the hearings until they end):

DOE’s Digital Duct Tape

IN TWO DAYS! "Don't Tread on Educators" Open Forum Nov. 14

In the midst of his endless and fascinating 3020a hearing

Jordana gets ready for afternoon nap

(another session tomorrow and I believe Friday) Portelos doesn't stop fighting - for everyone. Which is what makes him so dangerous to Tweed legal, which had 3 lawyers the other day while they called two witnesses. Total time of hearing: 10:30- 2PM. We were eating lunch by 2:30 -- 

Note to doe legal's Jordana Shenkman - apparently an avid reader of this blog - hope you had a nice afternoon off.

Add hearing officer and transcriber salary and you get an idea of what it is costing to try to get Portelos fired. One of the first acts in clearing out Tweed is to get rid of the entire legal department and get people who really want to root out people not fit for teaching instead of going on enormously expensive with hunts.

I'm rethinking my agreement not to publish details of the daily hearings. I think that is in essence a blackout and helps DOE Legal. Can't wait for Jordanna to start screaming about that. Tsk, tsk.

The hearing officer said she can only recommend we don't write about it since it is a public hearing. The other day a network curriculum person testified and it was clear that rather being there to support the teacher this was a case of being manipulated by the principal to get the teacher.

Here is Francesco's DTOE announcement for Thursday night's meeting.

Workplace Bullying in our schools? Not on my watch. This bullying comes in different forms. From colleagues, administrators, district, state and federal mandates etc. 

Your well-being is important to your students, your family and your friends. Come find out how to both cope and protect yourself.

Join the email support group by emailing a blank message to DTOE+ subscribe@googlegroups.com

Link to flyer enclosed within page.

http://wp.me/p31ecs-HB

Bloggers please share on your sites.

Francesco Portelos
IS 49 UFT Chapter Leader
Parent
Educator www.educatorfightsback.org
Mrportelos.com

"In the end, we will not remember the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends." -Martin Luther King Jr.

Portelos Hearing: DOE Legal Invalidates Chapter Leader Election at IS 49SI

Imagine a union allowing the employer to invalidate an election for building rep and remaining mute.  

Multiple contract violations involved in principal's refusal to meet w. elected CL on a regular basis, consult committee, etc. Not that they ( union bureaucracy)  care.... observer at Portelos hearing

How absurd. They've had 500 +days to investigate him and they are just *now* "checking" his "in-laws' wi-fi"? WHILE the hearing is underway?  And for what purpose? Are his in-laws Julius and Ethel Rosenberg? Are they looking for H-bomb diagrams? WTF ! Last week that investigators were there... or at his *own* parents' house ....  THE NIGHT BEFORE THE OPENING HEARING. They were talking to HIS CHILDREN. I was appalled..... observer

I am adhering to a non-mandatory request from the hearing officer not to go into the details of the charges and the hearing. But what follows occurred before the hearing formally resumed on Monday (Sept. 23) with an objection from the DOE attorney – there were 2 of them plus an assistant -- when will the press begin to question the astronomical cost of this case where not one negative word about how this teacher taught children is mentioned?

The DOE lawyer,  Jordana Shankman, objected to Portelos standing outside the school from which he has been banned since April 26, 2012 and claimed he was doing it to intimidate witnesses. The fact that he might have been there as a way to address issues that some staff members might want to raise with their chapter leader lead to the bizarre DOE claim that he was not the chapter leader.

We were all shocked to learn that IS 49SI principal Linda Hill's refusal to recognize Francesco Portelos as the duly elected chapter leader was ordered by DOE legal.

In other words, the DOE has interjected itself into a chapter election by unilaterally declaring the election for chapter leader as null and void. When questoned by NYSUT lawyer Chris Callagy, Principal Hill said it wasn't she who made the decision not to deal with Portelos but the order was issued by DOE legal. Later on in the hearing, the DOE attorney made a point of reiterating this. Callegy managed to get Hill to confirm that the Staten Island UFT maintained that Portelos was still the elected chapter leader.

DOE lawyer Jordana Shankman also outrageously asserted that Portelos had no right to be in front of his school even on his own time and that he should be in the "place he was assigned."

In the meantime, since last year, the principal's cronies have initiated 3 failed attempts to recall Portelos.

My question to the UFT is: What will you do about it when the DOE, looking to paint a teacher as dangerous and threatening to a staff as grounds for dismissal must suffer the inconvenient truth that said staff elected this "threat" as their union rep and then the DOE declares that he is not their union rep as a way to make their case?

In fact it is hard to decide who to be more pissed off at: the DOE or the UFT for standing by while this farce continues. Imagine a union allowing the employer to invalidate an election and remaining mute. Wouldn't one expect the Staten Island UFT borough office to take a strong stand here? To consistently affirm that Portelos is the official school chapter leader? To go into the school and address the principal's attempts to foment recall votes? To join Portelos in holding meetings outside the school grounds to show support instead of letting him stand there alone and be accused by the DOE of acting like a terrorist while trying to serve the people who elected him?

In fact, information sometimes filters out of the UFT inner sanctum that UFT officialdom would be perfectly happy to see Portelos be found guilty and just go away. I'll leave the "why" to speculators.
 
There were 4 MORE retirees at the hearing. The next hearing date will be Monday, Sept. 30, 10AM.

Afterburn
Principal Hill testified how she consulted with DOE legal, network legal, her union's legal and goodness knows how many "legals"? The major "educational" innovation of Joel Klein has been the number of lawyers he added to the payroll.
Imagine the costs of this attempt to get rid of Portelos.

Portelos Arrested and Released After 30 Hours in Holding Cell As Asst. DA Tosses Case

Note to DOE Legal: How do you spell D-I-S-B-A-R?
Ramifications of tactic of having teachers arrested for fighting back will be felt.

I can just imagine the judge getting as big a laugh as Francesco got as he snookered DOE Legal into taking an outrageous action against him by involving the NYCPD in what was clearly a joke posting that he hacked into the DOE payroll system and gave himself a raise claiming he hacked in using Dennis Walcott's logon using the password kittensRcute. (How to “Hack” the DOE Payroll Portal and Give Yourself a Raise).

That either sent the crack DOE tech team into a panic given they seem to think Portelos can control their computers using smoke and mirrors. Or the real panic may be DOE legal thinks it will lose the case and not get Portelos terminated, so they came up with this attempted scam, which P is adding to his federal lawsuit. The boy may own the DOE by the time he is finished, and maybe part of the NYPD.

At first I felt P had gone too far with his post, given that he was expecting a ruling on his case. I urged him to keep this stuff under wraps until his decision came through. But when he pointed out that a Louis Scarcella like detective was apparently working as an agent of DOE legal by going after teachers who defended themselves things began to fall into place.

Will Portelos end  up owning this apartment?

In another breaking development he just informed us that SCI has backed his claims that the DOE was lying when it claimed he used his computers at work for his real estate business, something we heard repeatedly from DOE Legal attorney Jordana Shenkman, hopefully soon to be disbarred.

SCI just released a statement indicating the real estate files were not found on my desktop but rather printed from the internet. http://bit.ly/1fqlESa

Portelos 3020 a Proceeding letter - 3 11 14-1.pdf

dropbox.com

Here are some of his postings on Facebook.

Francesco ForEducation Portelos  
Thank you all for your concern and texts. Just got out of jail around 7pm. Was arrested Monday morning due to trumped up charges by the DOE lawyers and held for 33 hrs. Sleeping on cell floor and handcuffed was an experience. The DA dismissed all charges.
 
Thanks everyone. We are adding to Federal lawsuit. Break me? I was lying on the filthy floor smiling thinking what wall I will post the shields and law degrees of those involved. As I was finally called out to leave, cell mate gave me fist bumps and one yelled out. "Don't forget to write about us teach. Keep fighting."

There is a Panel for Educational Policy meeting at Prospect Hts HS Tuesday March 18 at 6PM. Maybe call on Farina to wipe out DOE Legal and start all over again so they can go after teachers who should not be in the classroom, instead of whistle blowers.

Portelos Update - Clear Evidence of support for him

My bad back prevented me from attending recently but this report was sent from two of the MOREistas there observing and some anon comments from what appear to be parents.
 - I was hoping to go today but have to drive a friend to the doctor. And there's another session scheduled for Weds though the snowstorm may kill that.

These are the 2 MOREista retirees who have attended most of the hearings.

Retiree 1 - Jan. 10:

All things considered, it was a *really* good day for the " respondent".

I thought the impeachment of Ms. Cavalleri backfired in the sense that her reappearance had the effect (on me, at least) of underscoring her basic truthfulness. Long story short... she used the wrong word ("lied") in her " private " (Facebook) email when she should have said " I forgot to mention", or "I just realized I left out.... " etc.

This led to a long jumbled cross examination by JS ... kind of reminiscent of the scene from the The Verdict where James Mason badgers the witness about whether or not she understands the legal meaning of the word "perjury". CC , on redirect, got Cavalleri to use the word "dyslexic"... getting it I suppose, into the record". God knows whether or not either hearing officer or JS understand the communication implications of the term but it least it's in the record. I don't know about Ms. Busto, but the only thing I took away from Ms. Cavalleri's appearance was the image of the DOE fiendishly scouring the internet for every and any mention of this case that might conceivably help them win. ( Who exactly does all this....errrrmmm... "research"? The mind boggles.)

Ms. Jesino... parent co-ordinator... was a delight. 10 plus years on the job, kids went to school at I-49, etc. In other words: superb credentials, credibility-wise. Basically she underscored defense version of events from beginning to end. JS tried to impeach her by establishing that she was still friends w. FP's sister. ( She is.) Not clear what she achieved beyond that. Loooooong series of "Isn't it true that..." questions, the answer to all of which were "no." The difficulty is Ms. Jesino seems to take the "WHOLE" truth part of the oath *very* seriously and answers in paragraphs, providing both antecedents to simple facts, as well as their consequences. . Most of the details of which helped the defense narrative. JS kept (I thought) circling and circling, ready to pounce.

Rare moment of levity: Ms. J appended the term "Sweeetie" at the conclusion of a long answer to one of JS's "isn't it true that" questions. JS admonished her and Ms. Busto commented that that was probably the "friendliest" cross-examination response that JS would ever elicit.

Jesino was cool, calm, collected, natural, appealing. And very credible. She was calmly reading a tattered paperback while we were waiting for DOE to come back after lunch break to begin cross exam. (Do they time these "delays" to try to psych the witnesses? If so.. it didn't work.) I stood-up to catch the a glimpse of the cover, saw it, made a mental note to write it down but got distracted and it is lost for all time. It was non-fiction

Retiree 2 - January 10, 2014

Norm,

The former parent coordinator was excellent, so matter of fact and in control while describing just how toxic and inept the the admin is. Said it straight: AP ------- was drunk and disgusting. Parents, students and staff all agreed that AP –––– clothing was revealing and she would gape her legs so folks could see her polka dot underwear. She contradicted emphatically and convincingly all the words that the previous witnesses claimed she said.

     [DOE Legal Slugette] Jordana was at a loss about how to cross examine. At one point [NYSUT Attorney] Chris actually coached her how to phrase a question, which she then used. Clearly she was flustered and unsure of herself. Her attempts to badger the witness failed to throw the witness off. The narrative the DOE has tried to seamlessly orchestrate now looks more like cover-up fiction than some version of reality.

The staff crying to coordinator that they feel they would be retaliated against by administration if they even speak Portelos' name. The SCI investigator Matthew Martucci that told Hill everything that was said about her...

-------

3 Anonymous comments on your post "Francesco Portelos: Teacher Under Assault by Princ...":

I was a member of SLT at IS49 as the title 1 rep. If Ms. Hill didn't like my questions and didn't want to answer them, she would act like a 12yr old and say, "you know ms. wright, i'm really trying to get along with you." if she made a face or disliked any of my questions then she had her puppets chime in and attack me with negative comments and discouraging me from asking or speaking my mind. she demanded 1500 dollars from the title 1 money ASAP. I told her I needed to speak with higher ups and she quoted me again with, u know ms. wright, i'm really trying to get a long with you. and asking me who do I need to speak with and when will I get back to her. I told her Tuesday, which was two days later and she huffed and puffed like she was going to blow me down. when saturday rolled around she sent me an email telling me to disregard her request.


====
I was the title 1 rep and when I asked a question at the PTA meeting about the safe room, I was told at an executive meeting that was set up to intimidate me from asking negative questions in front of parents. I was told by sherina peterkins the so called president of the PTA and the so called leader in charge, Ms. Hill, that I am to stop whatever I am doing and ask ms. hill these questions in her office. that if my question is personal that I am to go to the principal in private. you stupid clowns, my son goes to your school and everything that happened or happens in this school is personal to me. I told them whatever. that if I want to ask a question I will ask it at the PTA.

====
I was harassed by ms. hill's security officers. she had only two black females escorting me around like I was a criminal. everyone else walked in that school with no escorts except me. I called mike riley to complain. it stopped for 2 weeks and started up again. this was all because ms. hill didn't like that I was asking a lot of questions about the budget, the title 1 funds, questioning the CFN and just asking positive questions about the kids' welfare when it came to education. as a title 1 rep I was treated like shit. but I didn't care because I knew that heifer couldn fire me. one time even one of the officers interpreted for me in English back to English. go figure. I have a lot of stories about this piece of shit school

Portelos Update: A Para for the Defense, Part 2

The story below is a warning to anyone who might think that taxpayer supported DOE Legal has any interest in the truth.

Part 1 is here: Portelos Update: A Para for the Defense, DOE Pulls Race Card, Theresa Europe Sits in to Intimidate Hearing Officer


PORTELOS HEARING DEC. 18, 2013

CROSS EXAMINATION by DOE Legal Jordana Shenkman –

JS: U heard rumors of Apr 2011 meeting P brought up safety concerns – u weren’t there to hear who brought what up and based on hearsay –U didn’t hear admin response – CS: “they don’t talk to us”
JS: U don’t say hello to Hill – 
CS: she doesn’t say hello to us. Majority of tchrs said – she didn’t --- I took it personal – but told to get used to it.
None of admin said hello to most teachers – I stopped taking it personal

JS: you say people at schl afraid of Admin – are u aware of people afraid of P? 
CS: NOT ONE.
JS: You say safety not being addressed at school – 
CS: I KNOW IT.
JS: That didn’t stop u from sneaking in 2 strange men thru back door not through schl security?
OBJ from Chris Callegy: – You don’t get to make things up. No foundation for your question. 

Now you have to follow the bouncing ball of Shenkman's outrageous (and embarrassing - to her) question about 2 strange men sneaking through security. Shenkman made a big point that they did not sign in - making it look like a criminal act. And also Shenkman's attempt to make it appear CS was disciplined for doing so. The real story came out under Chris C's cross. I'll paraphrase.

CS had bought a small refrigerator for the office she shared and brought her husband and his friend to the school to take it down to his car. [CS was leaving the school permanently and it was the end of the school year.] He drove up to the front of the school but the custodian told him to drive to the loading dock where the door would be open which it was. As they walked two of the AP'S were there and saw them and said nothing. CS took them to security where the guard did not have passes handy and also said she knows CS' husband so she waved them through without signing in.

Principal Linda Hill, vindictive in every way, got in touch CS' district 75 principal who had to take his valuable time to look at the video tape and then told CS not to go back to the school again for the final few days.

She was never disciplined in any way.

The story above is a warning to anyone who might think that taxpayer supported DOE Legal has any interest in the truth.

Portelos Hearing: NY Post Reporter Reuven Fenton Commits Journalistic Malpractice

Yes, Reuven, the staff of IS 49 was so intimidated, threatened, manipulated, demoralized, and polarized that they elected Portelos chapter leader. Twice. While he was in the rubber room.

Re-Edited

NY Post hack reporter Reuven Frank, right, with NY Post Photog

I know some people are anxious to find out about Day 1 of the Portelos 3020 hearing yesterday.

But you won't find anything accurate in Reuven Fenton's laugh out loud hack job in today's NY Post.

When I arrived at the hearing around 10:45 I noticed a photographer, whose name I didn't get, lurking outside the building and heard the security guards talking about him. I knew immediately from his demeanor he was connected to the NY Post. I got the pic above during the lunch hour. Do you know why the Post is going broke? They send a photog to spend hours outside a hearing waiting to get a picture that would make their victim look menacing. (I bet a smiling Portelos would never appear in The Post.)

If you want to see the real Portelos, watch this video I shot of him speaking to and charming a packed room of a 100 people at a MORE event last February (his segment starts at 21:35 but you would do well to watch Harris Lirtzman's opening segment too).

https://vimeo.com/60555824



Exactly what hearing did Reuven Fenton attend? It wasn't the same one I and at least 2 other MOREista retirees attended. (I will get statements from them for our future reporting which will expose Fenton for his biased "reporting".) There also was a reporter for the morning session from I think Gotham who has not reported yet. (I also had to leave after the morning session but David Dobosz came back to cover the afternoon session.)

I want to point out that all parties had agreed not to publish any of the details of the hearing and we are going to adhere to that agreement so as not to throw any monkey wrenches into the work of Chris Callagy, Portelos' NYSUT appointed lawyer, who I've seen in action in the David Pakter and the Pat Dawson cases. There is no one I have more confidence in as a lawyer, so despite the vendetta against Portelos he has a puncher's chance with Chris Callagy in his corner.

The hearing officer will be the key of course. She seemed very pleasant - on the surface - but that makes no difference. I am convinced that no matter what the evidence presented on both sides, hearing officers often base their judgement on the believability and likeability of the accused.

Let me get to the crux of Reuven Fenton's journalistic malpractice (and I would warn any teachers out there who he seeks info from to boycott him).

I know reporters don't write headlines so let's put the blame on Post editorial for this one: More mischief from ‘rubber room’ teacher.

I actually did not hear one word of "mischief" and neither did my MORE colleagues. But we'll expose this in the future.

Someone tell me this is journalism where I highlighted hackisms in pink:

A Staten Island teacher who taunted the Department of Education by live-streaming video of his time in a “rubber room” continued to hog the spotlight at his termination hearing Thursday by inviting the media to watch. Francesco Portelos, accused of rampant insubordination at IS 49, opened the normally closed disciplinary procedure in hopes of extending his 15 minutes of fame. But the move blew up in his face, when he was not allowed to speak because it was the department’s turn to present its case.

I loved this line:

Unlike a normal trial, Portelos’ side will make its case at a later hearing.

What Fenton, (did he graduate from the 5-week training course offered by Reporters for America?)  doesn't  get it that in normal trials and in 3020 hearings, the prosecution goes first and cross-examination follows. And then the defenses presents. And this case is 3 days of hearings, which Fenton doesn't seem to realize. DOUBLE DUHHHH!.  Fenton won't be assigned soon to cover the courts.

Yesterday was about the presentation of the DOE chief witness, the principal of the school. She testified in the morning session for about an hour and a half and about 2 hours in the afternoons session.

So what exactly blew up in his face? And as for the "rampant insubordination" I had to hold myself back from laughing out loud at what was presented as "rampant insubordination."

As for "hogging the spotlight" Portelos sat quietly next to his attorney for the entire hearing.

There's even more hilarity in Fenton's report:

“[Portelos] used intimidation, threats, manipulation and false allegations to scare people into getting his way,” DOE attorney Jordana Schenkman said. Portelos, 34, allegedly made life hell for colleagues at the Staten Island middle school by slapping papers out of people’s hands, mass-e-mailing complaints and making false theft claims. “I was watching my staff become demoralized, polarized, intimidated,” Principal Linda Hill testified at the hearing.

Yes, Reuven, the staff of IS 49 was so intimidated, threatened, manipulated, demoralized, and polarized that they elected Portelos chapter leader.

Twice.

Elected while in the rubber room (the first time in history) -- meaning he was not allowed into the school  to campaign.

When principal Linda Hill tried to strong arm people into recalling and running against Portlelos this past spring she failed in her attempt miserably. No one ran against Portelos. I've been around schools for 45 years and know full well that even semi-competent principals can get someone to run for chapter leader -- her failure to do so is indicative of .... well, you'll hear all about it after the hearings conclude.

You see Reuven, this is what is known as REAL REPORTING. I hope they give you an extra week of training in the future --- at your next job.
 

Portelos Hearing Update: DOE Legal Chilling Attempt to Suppress Teachers Who Fight Back Publicly

Callagy said the DOE claim will have a chilling effect on teacher rights to go to court to defend themselves. With an air of disgust he then dismissed the witness.

TODAY

Yesterday we heard two anti-Portelos witnesses, both teachers at the school, as DOE legal attempts to paint Portelos' attempts to fightback as "undermining" and "creating a bad tone" in the school and place all blame on him. The very idea that Portelos was responding to an assault is off the table to the DOE.

We heard testimony from two members of the anti-Portelos pro-principal Linda Hill wing about how "together" the staff was BEFORE the attack on Portelos by the school administration and how the school is now divided into 2 camps. Blame is heaped on Portelos for taking strong actions to defend himself.

Of course when Francesco gets to present his case there will be loads of teachers coming forth to present his side.

Many of the 38 charges against Portelos are related to the way he defended himself (though they are trying to trump up some bullshit using the network curriculum specialist as a foil that he was not really a good teacher). But I was still stunned to hear DOE  lead lawyer Jordana Shenkman basically claim that teachers could be terminated for defending themselves.

This was made clear when even NYSUT lawyer supreme, Chris Callagy, expressed surprise when Shenkman objected to his attempt to use the DOE witness' deposition in Portelos' federal case to demonstrate serious discrepancies in her testimony (see below for an example).

Shenkman claimed that Portelos' federal lawsuit and the testimony therein had no relevance in this case. And in fact the DOE is trying to claim Portelos should be fired because actions such as the Portelos blog and the federal lawsuit were disruptive to the tone of the school. Truly 1984 double think territory.

Chris was demonstrating how blatantly the witness lied and claimed loss of memory in yesterday's testimony (MOREistas Paul Hogan, David Dobosz and I just kept looking at each other in disbelief). In any court if a witness' testimony at different times shows blatant discrepancies, that is called lying. (Will the DOE bring the witness up on charges for lying under oath?)

Callagy said the DOE claim will have a chilling effect on teacher rights to go to court to defend themselves. With an air of disgust he then dismissed the witness.

Afterburn:
One of the letters in Portelos' file was the claim he called this witness a "fuck" during a heated argument (which he denies). "Unprofessional behavior" of some kind is the charge. The witness was supported by the then chapter leader (who is due to testify tomorrow.)  

But oops. Portelos recorded the event: Portelos denies ever using the term and can prove it since he recorded it.

http://soundcloud.com/user768797347/susanne-abramowitz-outburts-1

But the tape sure caught the witness red-handed.
 
Paraphrasing Callagy: During your deposition in the case brought by Portelos you admitted that before P used foul language you called him a fuck'n idiot. You also called him a piece of shit and fuck'n nasty?

Somehow this info was not reported to the principal, Linda Hill. Or it was and irrelevant given the attempt to railroad a teacher for daring to raise questions.

And how about DOE Legal which will go after a teacher for calling another a fuck in response to a verbal assault but then uses the very perpetrator against him?

One of the major calls for changes at Tweed should be the elimination of the criminals at DOE Legal. Sure we want to get rid of bad teachers but let's have rational people in charge who will not go on witch hunts.