Palatine teacher retiring after controversial Facebook post about Black Lives Matter
A Palatine High School teacher whose controversial Facebook post about Black Lives Matter protests in the wake of George Floyd's death sparked a school district investigation has submitted a retirement letter to the district.
The retirement, which still must be formally accepted by the by Palatine-Schaumburg High School District 211 board of education at its June 18 meeting, ends the investigation.
“Our core values include respect, diversity, equity and unity,” the district said in a statement Friday. “Racism or disrespect in any form, will not be tolerated. Our work in these areas is ongoing and never complete, and we will continue to learn and grow to make our schools and communities better and stronger places.”
District officials said the social media post, made after the end of the school year, came to their attention last week and an investigation was begun.
At the time, the district said: “The posting has been removed. ... The statements in the post do not reflect the values or principles of District 211. We are truly sorry for any harm or disrespect that this may have caused.”
Though the original post was deleted, screenshots purporting to be the teacher's remarks were being shared on social media by others during the past week.
The recent investigation was sparked by a social media post made after George Floyd's death in police custody and the nationwide protests that followed it. But the same teacher was disciplined for a different matter last year.
On March 14, 2019, the board of education voted unanimously to suspend the teacher for four days without pay and issue a “notice to remedy.” The meeting minutes of the vote do not describe the reason for the disciplinary action.