PS IS 71 -September 2013 A year ago, I brought up a potential issue for our school. I submitted the topic to Susanne Abramowitz, who was the School Leadership Team person at the time. For those of you who know my story, you know that she later used me… Continue reading
On Friday January 4, 2013, my UFT districtrepresentative was summoned for a meeting at my school. He was called in to discuss me, but I did not get an invite. “Who else was there” you ask Attendees: Principal Linda Hill -under investigation Assistant Principal Denise Diacomanolis -under investigation Assistant Principal… Continue reading
Today is 253 days since I was wrongfully removed from Berta Dreyfus IS 49. Today is also 339 days since an investigation was started on me. Please keep these two numbers, 253 days and 339 days, in your head as you watch a few seconds of this clip. http://youtu.be/nYiN0Pr1Svct=1m1s “Faster… Continue reading
UPDATE 9/15/13: New secret email found that allegedly shows NYC DOE Deputy Chancellor of Operations Kathleen Grimm sent false information about asbestos disturbance at IS 49 Berta Dreyfus, Staten Island. Knowlingly false I do not know. I hope not. This piece was originally posted in early January 2013. I… Continue reading
To piggyback on yesterday’s post, A CRAZY YEAR, here is what happened a year ago today. After realizing Principal Linda Hill sent the CEP without our School Leadership Team even looking at it, I received the following email: ———- Forwarded message ———- From: <calantjis@aol.com> Date: Dec 14, 2011 7:13 PM… Continue reading
Wow. Has it been a year already It’s about 4:45PM December 13, 2012. Let me take you back to exactly that moment last year….. The School Leadership Team, composed of parents and staff, was sitting in room 131 of Berta Dreyfus IS 49. The State Quality Review was visiting that… Continue reading
What happens when you can’t control the guy who is blowing the whistle Well, you try to plug the whistle.Apparently, my situation has transported me out of the United States of America and into some foreign, Kafkaesque society. Logic and rationale play no role here. What they don’t understand yet… Continue reading
“We want the worst possible teachers in the classroom” – Said no one ever. What I attempted to do, while in educator exile, is learn. Learn about law, physics, earth science, read up on other cases, read up on labor law and union contracts etc. I had ZERO professional development… Continue reading
Please remember to hide your Time Card in a safe place to prevent transparency. No pin required. Just write in the times you want us to believe you worked and the taxpayer will send you a check. Right Principal Hill It seems that there is a “DOEble Standard” when it… Continue reading
On Tuesday November 27, 2012, I spent the day efficiently converting oxygen to carbon dioxide for the 103rd day in the Rubber Room. At night, I attended an Educators 4 Excellence event at Baruch College. I had seen someone share a link on Twitter and saw the words “New Teacher… Continue reading
It’s unfortunate we had to go this route, but justice has to be served. I didn’t take a $20,000+ cut in salary and send myself in to more student loan debt to be stopped in my tracks. Principal Linda Hill and her cronies came after the wrong parent/educator. On top… Continue reading
As of November 21, 2012, I have been removed from my position, as a classroom STEM teacher, for: 210 Calendar Days and 100 School Days (40 days past 60 day time limit agreed upon) …and I’m not the only one of the 220+ educators who past the time limit. Just… Continue reading
Please see the page that I put up on my site, top menu or this linkHurricane Sandy Appeal for DOE employees, to fill out and share your appeal reasons and decisions. A few hundred have used it and some are commenting on the reasons. We just want to take a… Continue reading
I was not in it for the money, but rather for the satisfaction that I might have made a difference to one student who later made a difference for the rest of us. When the thought came to leave the environmental field, I was suspended 150 ft over the NY… Continue reading
My newborn son, Anastasio Sebastian Portelos It’s bad enough that NYC Department of Education officials removed me from my community school after I alleged misconduct. They left countless students without the education they deserved. To make matters worse, they continued with a series of poor decisions when I continued to… Continue reading
Huffington Post Live Interview on Rubber Rooms 11.08.12 Click Here for Interview (16 minutes) There are a million things I could be thinking about right now, but instead my mind goes to “How can we fix this Rubber Room issue” I think everyone can agree that it is a problem.… Continue reading
I’m not live streaming again because I’m insubordinate or defiant. I’m doing it because this case is still very open and I haven’t been told what policy or regulation I’m violating, if any. http://www.ustream.tv/channel/quickercam More info: Protectportelos.org/stream Continue reading
On Thursday, October 4, 2012, I took my plight to a whole new level when I created aLive Stream of a NYC Rubber Room (that does not exist). For months I have been blogging about it on my site and giving the world a “play by play” of what is… Continue reading
I didn’t write the book yet, but started with the cover. Who would have thought that some 30 years later I would be revisiting the first playground law of snitches get stitches I didn’t think it was a real law that adults followed as well. (Except when I watched The… Continue reading
If a union member believes that their contract has been violated, they follow grievance procedures for a remedy. That is of course after you first ask nicely. (Asking nicely has not been working me.) Back in March I asked nicely for Principal Linda Hill and her group to stop trying to divide my chapter and union bust. It didn’t work. Continue reading
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