Pat Mccollough
I am Pat McCollough, also known around campus as, "Coach Pat." Returned to the education industry at Hawthorne Middle/High School and became the victim of a hate crime.
on 1 Jun 2007, the last day of school, I feel prey to racial discrimination and a victim of hate. This happened on campus during the school day. My classroom was the only one spray painted with hate graffiti.
One student was identified as a suspect. Why was this student out of class and allowed to just roam around without a pass or without any supervision anyways. This was exam day.
The administration was passive about the entire situation. They gave me the impression that they mainly looked the incident as a "criminal act" or maybe "just a prank" and had not taken into consideration how the event traumatized me as a human being. They stated that they must have misread me because I was a pillar of strength and so well composed though out the entire situation. Well, Isn't that how professionals are suppose to respond.
If this type of racial behavior continues and is condoned with little or no consequences to the real criminals, someone could get seriously hurt...remember Jena 6? I wonder if those three nooses hanging on the tree traumatized any of the students or were they provided with any type of professional psychological counseling after having been subjected to such hate. I requested professional psychological counseling and was denied at two different levels. I had to eventually seek professional counseling through other resources outside of the school district.
It is a known fact there is a current issue with safety and security within the Alachua County School District, Gainesville, Florida.
I did not return to teaching.
great blog.
Posted: April 20th, 2008 | More Reviews From coffeestainednews | Report This Comment