Facebook case two years later: Barrow teacher still waiting for decision
One of the Facebook photos that a "parent" complained about in an anonymous e-mail
Not a week goes by when I don’t get an e-mail from somewhere around the world asking about the fate of Ashley Payne, the Barrow County teacher who lost her job two years ago after an anonymous e-mailer sent Facebook photos of her sipping wine and drinking beer in Europe.
While the case was in court last week, it remains unresolved. A decision is expected shortly but Payne’s attorney is not optimistic that she will regain her high school teaching position.
“Not yet. I don’t think it is happening,” said attorney Richard Storrs in a telephone interview today. “There is a new superintendent, and I was really hoping that this new superintendent would see things in such a way that we could move forward. But they are dug in more than ever.”
Now in graduate school at the University of Georgia, Payne said in an e-mail today, “I don’t think winning my job back has been a possibility since my contract ran out in the summer of 2010. The best I can hope for is some kind of monetary compensation and for everything to be resolved so that potential employers will know that there is no more to the story and no skeletons waiting to come out of my closet. I wonder if the ‘pending’ status of my case has made employers hesitant to hire me.”
The Facebook photos were standard travel shots in beer gardens and cafes and would have passed muster with most Sunday school teachers. Payne was simply sitting at a table with pals. Of 700 vacation photos, 10 had alcohol in them.
On her Facebook page, which was set to the highest privacy levels and was limited to Payne’s adult friends, she also posted that she was headed out to play Crazy Bitch Bingo, a popular game played weekly at Joe’s On Juniper in Atlanta.
According to an anonymous e-mail sent to the Barrow school chief, a student saw Payne’s Facebook page, an allegation that rang false from the start. In court documents, Barrow County admitted later that it never discovered the source of the e-mail or whether any student ever saw Payne’s Facebook page. (If you read my earlier blogs, you will see there is good reason to believe a colleague of Payne’s sent the e-mail, which came from a fake address.)
That is an important factor in this case as Barrow initially told me that Payne’s main offense was sharing her Facebook page with a student. Yet, the system never confirmed that a student ever saw the page.
At the time, I talked to the head of the state Professional Standards Commission, the state’s governing body over teacher conduct. He told me his office would not have responded to an anonymous e-mail, even though Payne’s boss told her that it was likely the PSC would strip her of her teaching license if the complaint came before it. The principal then suggested to Payne that resignation was a safer option for her, according to the written statement provided to me by Barrow County schools.
In an overreaction that drew condemnation around the world, Barrow forced the young teacher and UGA grad to resign. (If you are unfamiliar with this case, please read this blog.) The story sparked international debate over whether teachers should have Facebook pages, and where their privacy and school conduct codes collide
Barrow has moved for summary judgment, which is a ruling by a court without a full trial. Arguments were heard last week in Superior Court.
“The judge basically expressed that he thought some of their arguments were persuasive, basically that Barrow delayed long enough now that mandamus is not the right remedy. So, I told Ashley after the hearing that we would amend the complaint and go from there,” said Storrs. (See news story below for explanation of mandamus in this case.)
Payne continues to pursue her master’s degree to make her more marketable as a teacher, says Storrs. “It just doesn’t make any sense what happened to her. And she is such a delightful person. At every juncture, I thought we could get this resolved.”
Payne and I exchanged e-mails a while back about the case in general. I asked her if I could post her comments back then and she agreed, but I was waiting for an update to her case to share them:
So, here they are:
“I want more than anything for this case to be resolved– in my favor, but I am doing my best to move on with my life in the meantime. Teaching is still what I want to do despite the bureaucratic hypocrisy with which I have had to deal. I don’t want to let myself fall by the wayside like many passionate young teachers who are quickly jaded by the American educational system and switch to more appreciated careers that pay higher salaries.
“The system needs more young (and old!), passionate, idealistic thinkers — in spite of the fact that some of us use newfangled social networking sites and have a glass of wine or two during summer vacation. That’s why I’m seeking some semblance of justice in this case and continuing to work on my M.Ed. in Educational Psychology at the University of Georgia. I love kids, and I am learning even more about how they think and learn so that hopefully — hopefully soon — I can get back in the classroom and get back to doing what I love.”
Here is a news story about the hearing from the Gainsville Times:
Former Barrow County teacher Ashley Payne is waiting on a decision from a Superior Court judge about her former job.
It’s been nearly two years since the former Apalachee High School teacher claims she was forced to resign from her job due to the content of her Facebook page — a photo of her with an alcoholic drink and a posted curse word.
Payne filed a lawsuit against the district in October 2009, asking for a hearing from the Board of Education to determine whether she should keep her job and keep seeking payment from Aug. 27, 2009, until the day of the hearing.
Payne, her attorney Richard Storrs of Mills Paskert Divers and the counsel for the school district, Daniel Murphy of McLocklin & Murphy LLP, appeared before Chief Judge David Motes last week. Motes reviewed the Barrow County School District’s request for a summary judgment, which would allow Motes to dismiss the case without it going to trial.
The controversy surrounding Payne began Aug. 27, 2009, when an anonymous email sent to then-Superintendent Ron Saunders complained about the content on Payne’s page.Saunders forwarded the email to Apalachee Principal David McGee.
According to Payne, McGee called her into his office before classes began and convinced her to resign, saying she would be suspended otherwise.The district has always maintained that Payne resigned voluntarily.The case has gotten national attention and called into question how school faculty should handle themselves in the world of social media.
According to the attorney for Barrow County Schools, Payne’s complaint against the system should be dismissed for four reasons: Payne’s complaint, called a writ of mandamus, was filed against the Board of Education when it should have been filed against Saunders; a mandamus cannot be used to compel discretionary actions; a mandamus cannot undo an act that has already been done; and since Payne’s contract is expired, her request to initiate Fair Dismissal Proceedings is void.
Before the trial, Storrs said he filed an amendment adding the superintendent to the complaint.
On the other three counts, however, Motes appeared to favor the school district’s claims.
“The judge did not rule … but he said the school district has presented a pretty persuasive argument that this mandamus may not be right,” Storrs said. However, he still believes his client has a strong case.
“Our argument is that she was entitled to her hearing and is still entitled to that, she was entitled to her pay, so we believe the mandamus is still appropriate,” he said.
Storrs is also planning the next move for his client. “My basic plan is to file an amended complaint which will still be valid claims,” he said. “I think she has a valid claim for breach of contract for salary, and also think she has a claim for civil rights violations for not getting her hearing.”
Murphy was more hesitant to comment on the case. “The judge didn’t rule, so it’s really premature (to speculate),” he said. “We don’t know if there’s going to be another hearing. If there’s going to be another hearing, we know the issues but we don’t know when or where that will take place. … I don’t want the judge to think we’re trying this in the press. We are completely at the discretion of the court.”
–from Maureen Downey, for the AJC Get Schooled blog
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257 comments Add your comment
Dondee
August 17th, 2011
9:10 pm
And Beverly Hall just billed the City of Atlanta schools around 100k for her attorney fees! Wow…..ain’t that somethin’?
Laurie (not a K-12 teacher)
August 17th, 2011
9:17 pm
This is absolutely ridiculous. Absolutely ridiculous. I thought Natalie Munroe (the teacher who wrote the astonishing screeds attacking her STUDENTS and colleagues) should probably have been fired, but this Ashley Payne case is absolutely ridiculous. Unless there is some secret we don’t know, and this pictures with wine thing is a pretext for firing her for some other reason, they should tell her that they are very, very sorry, work out some kind of partial monetary compensation deal and hire her back. Ridiculous.
gsc
August 17th, 2011
9:42 pm
Completely crazy. One of, if not the best teacher in the county I came from was a functioning alcoholic. He loved kids and could flat teach. Adults knew of his situation and although frowned upon, he was completely respected. Parents were constantly requesting their kids be in his class! Privacy for teachers seems to be completely gone.
Jill Griffith
August 17th, 2011
10:04 pm
I guess those people who decided she could no longer teach are “perfect people” and they think they have the right to be the judge for what this lady does on her personal time. Lets look at the lives of every person who decided to do this to this person. Who are these people they should be ashame there day will come.
Linda
August 17th, 2011
10:09 pm
Welcome to Georgia, y’all! Just don’t teach or have a life here.
Ummmm
August 17th, 2011
10:12 pm
You know, if I voluntarily resign from my job because I don’t like what may happen if I don’t, I don’t get to sue them for forcing me to voluntarily resign. Then again, I’m not a teacher, I’m a do-er. But I can also go have a drink at night, so I guess it’s a trade-off.
Richard Harris
August 17th, 2011
10:17 pm
Do any of you who are defending Ms. Payne know anything at all about her other than what you read in this article? Or about Mr. McGee? Maybe she was a horrible teacher, maybe not, but you don’t know, and it does not stop you from making judgement on this case. You are all making judgements on something you know absolutely nothing about, yet you have the nerve to get on this blog and trash the principal.
Just wondering, Maureen, was your article supposed to be “news” or an opinion piece? If you categorize it as “news”, one hsa to question your journalistic integrity.
Jake
August 17th, 2011
11:01 pm
If indeed A. Payne has gone through all of this because of Facebook photos then she should be compensated. But, I think there’s more to this than just those Facebook photos of her getting blitz. What I don’t understand is why most feel the need to put every damn thing on Facebook.
pay up
August 17th, 2011
11:34 pm
beverly want more money for attorneys–pay the money–she didn’t know nothin
Dennis A. Rice
August 17th, 2011
11:57 pm
This is about nothing but a principal and a superintendent trying to cover their own asses with the public.
I Live In Barrow
August 18th, 2011
12:14 am
I live in Barrow County and am the spouse of a high school teacher employed in by the BOE. When this story first broke, it had an understandably chilling effect with regards to Facebook for every educator in the district (my spouse has never been on FB precisely because of the fear of this very event). Based solely on news reports my sympathies have always been with Miss Payne, and all of her peers in regards to the demarcation between personal privacy and professional concerns. Not only in Barrow, but beyond.
We are indeed a small county, and like most small communities, rumor and innuendo travels quickly. And while admittedly this is heresay, I’ve tried to keep an open mind about this situation until all the facts are available for public consumption. For those who support the BOE and administration, a common theme has been “there is more to the story”. Whether that is true or not is to be determined, but I at least hope Miss Payne has her day in court for a jury to decide.
Regarding Mr. McGee: many here have excoriated him based solely on media reports. Which, I believe even the fair-minded would admit, have been slanted in Miss Payne’s favor. But that’s the way it normally occurs when employees file a grievance against an employer.
But all of the attack’s on Mr. McGee and his character by those who consider him the latest “Great Satan” based on these reports are tremendously misguided. My spouse had the opportunity to work for/with him prior to his appointment at Apalachee, and also taught his children (who are brilliant and their collegiate academic accomplishments prove it). Other than Miss Payne, you would be very hard pressed to find anyone in this county who has worked for or with him to utter a negative word regarding his fairness and character. I know that’s not what those here who are baying for red meat want to hear or believe, but it’s the truth. Mr. McGee is a genuinely good person (and I don’t know about his personal religious beliefs so I don’t mean that in the evangelical holy-roller sense) who had positively impacted hundreds of young lives in Barrow County.
Does that mean I buy the adminstration’s version of events? No…not necessarily. But it does mean I’d like Miss Payne to have her day in court so we can all see the evidence (which again admittedly, and based on media reports, seems favorable for the plantiff).
Finally, I didn’t have time to review every post in this string so if this is old news I apologize. But for those of you screaming for Mr. McGee’s head, he has announced his retirement effective at the end of August. His elderly mother is suffering significant health issues, and he has some of his own as well. This may seem like a cover and cop-out to some of you, but his reasons are legitimate. Did this case impact his decision? Perhaps, but that’s another reason I would like to see the case go to trial and not dismissed by a summary judgement based on legal mumbo-jumbo.
darrell vollmer
August 18th, 2011
1:04 am
I remember seeing teachers buying boatloads of liquor for holiday parties at the local Sav-Mart back in the 80s. Nobody fired them and they were obviously going to tie one on. One of our drivers ed teachers had multiple DUIs.
Megan
August 18th, 2011
4:47 am
This is just dumb on all levels. It is just another case of unqualified people trying to make educational policy based on personal biases. I firmly believe that the current system of school boards and over paid administrators should be completely overhauled, dismantled and revamped to bring Georgia out of the dark ages. Put in a system where nepotism, cronyism and incompetence are replaced by qualified people ensuring childred are educated. So many boards have people that are self serving puppets and high level administrators that are nothing more that self serving politicians. The local system has a crony of the current gov’ner and has one year experience in the classroom. His first day on the job he threatened teachers if they bought beer in Walmart. In his first year he has managed to lose complete control of, what used to be, a quality school system. Grades have dropped, charges of racism are running rampant, lots of replacing qualified educators with buddies from his old school system (which was not that good). All very sad but allowed in Georgia as it starts at the top and has been this way through both political parties.
Lib in Cobb
August 18th, 2011
5:40 am
It is amazing and hard to understand that anyone would lose their job because of a picture like this. Ms.Payne is not crawling on the floor in a drunken stopper, nor is she participating in any form of behavior which would be objectionable to the average person, except for the knuckleheaded dope who sent the pictures in. I hope the school district is forced to pay her back wages from the date she was terminated up to the point of re-hire, plus legal fees, plus pain and suffering and her records be expunged. A nice round figure of $500,000 should do it! Not including legal fees.
Shame on the person who sent the e mail, who did not have the balls to identify themselves.
Lib in Cobb
August 18th, 2011
5:50 am
@Ummmmmm: You have categorized yourself as a “doer”, “not a teacher”. You sound like another idiot who believe that teaching is a profession where educators are not working and producing. You are completely wrong, if you managed to finish high school it is an accomplishment.
Don't give my name
August 18th, 2011
7:43 am
Believe it or not there are a lot of people out there (parents especially) who love to get teachers in trouble just to prove a “point”. I had tried to buy a motorcycle on craigslist and made a low offer, which was what I could afford. It so enraged the owner that after a few contacts back and forth he obviously had researched me, found out where I worked and threatened to tell my superintendent what “kind of person I was” trying to cheat and swindle people. Well I couldn’t afford to let that happen as today schools are willing to cut their ties with teachers before they risk spending money defending them.
Maureen Downey
August 18th, 2011
8:03 am
@Don’t give, You must have been dealing with someone who never sold anything on Craigslist because low offers are the norm. Sounds like you ran into a nut.
Maureen
Maureen Downey
August 18th, 2011
8:09 am
@I live, One of the surprising things about this story is that there doesn’t seem to be more to it. I spoke at length with the Barrow PR woman when this story broke. I saw the e-mail and the official statements of both the principal and assistant principal and then all the court filings. It remains a shock to me that a system would respond this quickly — within two hours of getting the e-mail — and this emphatically — ending a teacher’s career — over an anonymous e-mail that was never traced to its sender. (When I tried to e-mail the address, my e-mail was returned, suggesting this sender set up an account just to e-mail this allegation.) I stand by my original conclusion that the e-mail, due to the language, came from a fellow teacher who decided, for whatever reasons, that Payne should be punished for her Facebook postings.
Ashley Payne had satisfactory evaluations.
It is still bizarre to me that it went this far.
Maureen
Educated Guess
August 18th, 2011
8:27 am
@Maureen. Only one thing I can think of that would make a school superintendent jump on something like this so quickly and have a system weather this kind of bad press.
The complaint or email was from a board member.
Just saying.
Dragonteacher
August 18th, 2011
8:32 am
If Georgia teachers were allowed to unionize, this kind of travesty would never be allowed to occur. Teachers, out of all the parties involved in education, have no protection from frivolous accusations, and have no advocate, unless they are a member of a professional organization; sadly, even the professional organizations that are recognized as unions, with all the power of large numbers, in other states, are relatively powerless in Georgia to protect their members from unfounded assault.
Concerned Educator
August 18th, 2011
8:37 am
My Father used to say the “Peter Principle” is the backbone of the education system. The “Peter Princple” says, You rise to level of your incompetence. The Superintendent and the Principal are living proof of this.
Trina Henderson
August 18th, 2011
8:42 am
It absolutely amazes me that a teacher, out enjoying life AFTER school hours, trying to enjoy life PERIOD, having a good time with friends, is prohibited??? SHE HAD WINE. SHE HAD BEER!! So freaking what?? Had she ever been to work drunk? Did she have wine/beer/liquor at school? Was she a great teacher?? Who gives a flying fudge that she was having wine WHILE ON VACATION??? That’s the problem with society, the government and everywhere else. GET OUT OF PEOPLE’S PERSONAL LIVES!! She wasn’t out here molesting kids. She wasn’t out here providing alcohol to underage kids. She wasn’t out here drunk driving. SHE WAS ON VACATION!! It’s an absolute shame that just because you’re a teacher, or someone in the public arena, that you can’t enjoy your own life because of ridicules, nosey a$$es, and/or these holier than thou idiots who have nothing better to do with their time but to spy on other folks and spend unnecessary tax payers $ money on cases like this. GO ARREST THE REAL CRIMINALS!! GO AFTER THE REAL IDIOTS WHO ABUSE THE GOVERNMENT, ITS MONEY AND ITS SYSTEM!!! People are idiots! Good luck Ms. Payne. I hope you come out bigger and better then before!!
Dallas,Tx Dawg
August 18th, 2011
9:35 am
As a Barrow resident, I can tell you that this is sadly the norm around here. I have four kids in this district, and these idiots are more concerned about stuff that doesn’t matter, rather than providing a quality education to our kids. The new leader of this school system is no better than the last. Dr. Creel, is late for appointments with parents, and sings to the staff at their in service meetings, sounds like she chose the wrong profession !! However, the graduation rate of our two high schools is around 75%. They both failed (again), to make AYP. They seem more concerned about dress codes, and piercings, than teaching. This story is sad for the young lady involved, and I hope she wins the case. We have kids getting out of high school who can’t even write an essay to get into college, and if they do, then they are trapped taking remedial classes because they weren’t prepared well enough in high school. Sad that politics and infighting are more important than our kids futures !!! Just a small window into the issues facing most Georgia schools these days.
Dr NO
August 18th, 2011
9:35 am
“If Georgia teachers were allowed to unionize”
NO UNIONS!
The Big Bopper
August 18th, 2011
9:41 am
“If you choose to be offended by it, fine, but do not act like it is inherently offensive and that we all have to kowtow to your puritanical and tyrannical sense of decency.”
+1
The Big Bopper
August 18th, 2011
9:41 am
“Good Mother” = FAIL
Dragonteacher
August 18th, 2011
9:56 am
@ Dr NO – If you would bother to re-read your history of American Labor, you would understand that the basis for the creation and proliferation of labor unions was a series of situations precisely like this one, where the workers were not given fair and equitable treatment by their employers, but were rather treated as, if not slaves, indentured servants, forced to exist on the largesse and whim of their employer, not enjoying the right to legal protection or fair compensation under the law.
Teachers don’t want special treatment, just fair treatment, with the same rights as any auto worker or electrician or truck driver.
Colorado Bulldog 1992
August 18th, 2011
10:40 am
I don’t understand why she would even want to continue in such an ultimately soul sucking career. Hopefully she gets a big fat check for them screwing her over. I also hope she decides that working in Education is a complete waste of a career (no matter what color kool-aid the professors in the College of Education at UGA try to get her to drink!). I started out as a teacher. I realized that the entrenched bureacracy, lack of respect, money, and overall b.s. just was not worth it. I have been out of the class room for almost 14 years and wouldn’t go back for anything! I strongly urge anyone considering a career in education that it is not worth it.
Bottom line: GET OUT ASHLEY! DON’T LOOK BACK! SIC’EM DAWGS!
David
August 18th, 2011
10:40 am
I did not know that a school teacher off the clock and in another country could not have a drink of alcohol! IF so, does this apply to Principals, Superintendents, School Board Members, etc. Like my Dad use to say, ” What’s good for the goose is good for the gander!” The picture on the Facebook wasn’t nude or naughty in any way nor did she look drunk sooooo. Why did she have to resign. Remember the old song, Harper Valley PTA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Harold
August 18th, 2011
10:41 am
I would say I hope she owns Barrow County by the time this is over, but who in the heck would want to own Barrow County? I guess she could sell it to the Mexicans for land for growing marijuana to cut down on shipping costs to Athens GA.
woodrow
August 18th, 2011
10:45 am
What a terrible injustice to this young teacher. Now I wonder what negative effect this will have on the teaching profession and the brightest among them seeking to be teachers. This is very poor administration. The schools in GA are a joke because of the administrations.
Claudia
August 18th, 2011
12:47 pm
As teachers, we have to be careful about what we post online. When we get together for dinner or a party, most of my teacher friends are afraid even to be photographed with a glass of wine in the picture, let alone in their hands. I agree that it’s unfortunate that we have to be so careful, but we cannot control other people’s reactions; and many of my students have come from families and religious traditions that forbid the consumption of alcohol–particularly conservative Protestants and Muslims. On the other hand, I also think that it’s important that we keep our Facebook pages private–friends only–which opens up the whole issue of who has access to your Facebook page. Why open it to students and their families?
Face Book Photos by Good Mother
August 18th, 2011
1:17 pm
Claudia advocates inviting friends only to be on Face Book photos.
My question is, why even have photos on your Face Book pages ? Why write anything at all? One person to one person email is much safer.
Anyone can copy and paste information from your Face Book pages and spread it. It’s likely one of the teacher’s real life in the flesh friends copied and pasted her photos around and the text as well.
Why not just live your life privately?
K Ford
August 18th, 2011
2:33 pm
She should find the stupid, jealous, incompetent Bxxtch that sent the anonymous email and whip her senseless. No doubt some useless, obese failure of a teacher sent the email. The entire staff of the Barrow county school district should be fired for consummate stupidity. Makes me sad this can happen in America today. She never have given in to the bullying superintendent and resigned – should have fought him and them tooth and nail. Idiocy.
DaDa
August 18th, 2011
2:33 pm
This is bs. Please, please leave color out of it. I knew it would not belong before I got to a comment that separates the color. Wrong is wrong and it does not matter what color it is. It’s wrong. Beverly Hall is probably as guilty as sin. I don’t know. I’m not judging her. But please leave African American out of it. You said if was African American that lost their job, Jesse Jackson would be marching and protesting. He’s not marching and protesting for Beverly Hall and if he wanted to, he probably could make a case for her. All he has to say is, “she had no idea”. Please, don’t do that.
J Smith
August 18th, 2011
3:05 pm
I cannot believe what I have just read…are you people off your heads??? I hope the spiteful person who started this all off has had their comeuppance big time. For the love of everyone let this lovely girl go back to what she was doing and find out who started this and punish them. Small mindedness at its worst.
Digger
August 18th, 2011
4:37 pm
If it’s one thing teachers fear more than creative intelligent coworkers, its a beautiful fellow teacher.
Selena
August 18th, 2011
4:38 pm
Good Mother, I may be being a “biotch” here, but you’re an absolute moron, and it’d be best if you go troll elsewhere. You need a life and to get your panties out of your small intestines. It’s not 1950. I’ve heard more cussing in a high school than in a bar. Furthermore, what if she was a knitter? Would you have been upset for her referencing Debbie Stoller’s “Stitch N Bitch” series of knitting books? OMG, Good Mother! Keep your precious Corn Children out of bookstores! (Does it equally offend you when someone mentions their cock? If so, I will refrain from talking about my gorgeous coc- er- chicken.) Good Mother, words are not bad. Misuse of words is. For example: “Good Mother” implies you are someone who is a shining example of what a mother should be… I hope I’m never as unapproachable as you are as a mother!
Mike S: You made lol. I could picture that exactly! “Teachers are having fun here… could it be…. SATAN?!”
H Lee
August 18th, 2011
4:46 pm
Typical example of where educators and administration have less sense than the kids they are trying to teach. I thought this sounded more like Clayton Bd of Ed than Barrow. These administrators instill and enforce zero tolerance policies and then wonder why kids have no respect for them. They can’t understand why the kids hate them and the schools. It is because they do not know the difference between application of the rules and justice. The school officials are just robots. The commissioners are no bodies usually and then get elected to the school board and then they have strutting time and get a chance to bully, make a few rules and look down their nose at anyone school related. Maybe some background needs to be dug up on these officials and posted online. Might make the forced to resign teacher look real angelic with her glass of beer or wine which ever it was. Code of ethics! What a joke. If it ever comes to light in this country reflecting how much money was paid out in bonuses to schools and associated people as a result of cheating, the school systems will never be able to face students again. Suppose Barrow Co officials promoted, suggested, aided, helped, students anywhere with their test scores?
Martha Medrano
August 18th, 2011
5:24 pm
What’s up with this??? Does this mean that teachers don’t have a life to, and according to what I read…she was suppose to be on her vacation. So what if she did drink, stores have displays of alcohol beverages…I don’t see their stores being closed down because some young kid saw their display! This is so ridiculous, wasting our tax money in this manner, what’s wrong with this system? Also, whoever reported her needs to get a life, and get real!!!
Yolanda
August 18th, 2011
6:28 pm
ridiculous…Give the lady her job back and stop wating tax payer money…JERKS!
Lillian Kinsel
August 18th, 2011
6:34 pm
Well lets not go on vacation if we cant enjoy ourselfs. I mean if you are so concern about relaxing then lets start at the top of the lists. superintendent down to the cafteria worker. And then lets go to our lawmakers. EVERYONE WOULD BE STRIPPED OF THEIR JOB and then what.
Trisha
August 18th, 2011
7:58 pm
I think that what Ashely did in her private time should be just that private. It is morally wrong that the individual, whom, actually sent the e-mail has not been revealed, and that they caused Ashely these problems. I hope that she will win the court case, and get her job back; preferably at another school. Since that school refused to ignore the allegations, and focus on the issue at hand; continuing to allow this bright young lady to teach our future generations. Ashely you did nothing wrong. So continue to persue these issues. God Bless You!
Another psuedonym
August 18th, 2011
8:33 pm
Kelly Henson, head of PSC, is an oenophile, and a superb one. So the oenophile would have a teacher dismissed for having an unknown photog take a pic of her HOLDING A GLASS OF, NOT DRINKING, wine? If that is not the height of hypocrisy, I know not what is.
JTS
August 18th, 2011
8:37 pm
There’s a very strong message about the dangers of Facebook here….
pay up
August 18th, 2011
9:46 pm
if this scum on the school board or administrators ever order a drink in public and someone sees them, they should be fired, with loss of pension—no exceptions.
seen it all
August 18th, 2011
9:48 pm
Quick note–
The lady was set up. She was betrayed by one of her “friends.” Don’t ever do Facebook. It is nothing more than an eye into your private life. It is a spy apparatus. Don’t be so naive.
lemonchiffon
August 18th, 2011
10:28 pm
It took almost 30 years for me to become a special ed teacher, going to school nights, weekends while caring for my children born with disability. It took less than 4 years for me to be broken working under the stressful conditions and unethical administrators so that I left. If someone who has gone through the rigors of caring for sick and dying children for all the years that I did can be brought to their knees working in public education, you KNOW it must be rough!! I now work for non-profits teaching adults with disabilities. I feel for this young woman! More power to her if she still wants to work among the dysfunctional!
Judy (Atlanta)
August 18th, 2011
11:27 pm
If “bitch” is the curse word to which the school is referring, then almost all television networks are in violation. I hope she prevails and that she checks her Facebook friends list to see which holier-than-thou “friend” passed this information either by using a cowardly anonymous email or sharing it with someone not on the list. If her FB settings are set at the highest level, it has to be someone who had access. I know people not on my friend list cannot see my photos, much less access my postings.
Moonflower
August 19th, 2011
6:23 am
Did everyone except me fail to read other coverage of this story? Young Ashley used the bword, as a proper noun, to describe a game she would be taking part in that particular night: “Bitch Night Bingo”. It was not a random usage, nor was it gratuituous vulgarity.
As for the vacation shots–that’s no one’s business outside of hers. Her privacy settings disallowed viewers except selected friends to see/read her posts. Makes one wonder…