Eastern H.S. Principal (DC) Fired ("Former" Marine, Ph.D. Has Lawsuit Filed Against Him)

WJLA ^ | 12/8/2006 | n/a

[Pyro7480]

Eastern H.S. Principal Fired

Eastern Senior High School Principal Shawn Hearn has been fired following a D.C. school system probe into his role in four altercations with students and a parent.

Hearn was arrested following one of the fights, but some of the other cases had not been previously reported.

Officials won't elaborate on what happened, but school chief Clifford Janey says it was the right move based on the findings.

The case that led to the investigation happened October 25th, when Hearn and a student were arrested following a fight in a hallway of the Northeast Washington school. Hearn and the 18-year-old student were charged with misdemeanor assault. Prosecutors have dismissed charges against both, saying they need more time to investigate. Witnesses have been subpoenaed to testify before a grand jury.

Hearn is also facing a half million-dollar lawsuit stemming from the altercation.

[Pyro7480]

Shawn A. Hearn, then-principal of Eastern Senior High School in Northeast Washington, leaves court last month after prosecutors dropped their assault case against him.

From a Washington Post article on the firing:

Janey hired Hearn in August to help transform the high school from a low-performing institution into a Latin academy for high performers. The probe, during which school officials interviewed parents, students and teachers, revealed two incidents that had not been publicly reported.

Hearn, a former Marine, received a doctorate in educational leadership with a concentration in multicultural and urban affairs from the University of Sarasota. He received his undergraduate degree in English literature.

Hearn had been an assistant principal at Annandale and Madison high schools in Fairfax County. Aside from a brief stint overseeing a summer school program in Virginia, he had not worked as a principal before being appointed head of Eastern. Hearn was Eastern's eighth principal since 1997.

Chris Core, a local host on WMAL, has been spending the past 45 minutes talking about this story. He is furious with the school system, and the lawyer/parent(s) who have filed this lawsuit. Eastern High School apparently has a reputation for being a "rough" school, to say the least. The DC school system hires a guy to start to clean the place up, and they fire him for it. The "inmates" are truly running the asylum.

[Always Right]

There is no wonder why inner city schools are cesspools. It is sad that kids who even want to succeed have not place to do.

[Pyro7480]

Now, there's an obviously leftist caller saying that teachers/adminstrators should never lay a hand on a child, since it gives the wrong impression that people who have power can get whatever they want. What a wacko ideology.

[USMCWife6869]

First, there is no such thing as a former Marine (although I know many who wish there were in Murtha's case). Second, I work at a high school, and some of these kids are downright dangerous. Some of them scare the crap out of me. The government has tied everyone's hands. There is nothing you can do to these kids anymore without getting in trouble, and don't think these kids don't know that.

[geezerwheezer]

Like....duh....what else is new. After all, it is Washington D.C. Any city that re-elects a crack smokin', whore monger for Mayor sure as hell ain't gonna let some guy institute changes in the high school there, so what did you expect? They are dimorats thru and thru.

[Pyro7480]

First, there is no such thing as a former Marine

That's why I put it in quotations. :)

[fredhead]

I had an assistant principal in jr. high who was a retired Marine officer. (He was also the 7th - 8th math teacher). One morning before school, two boys were brought to him for fighting. He grabbed the biggest boy by the front of the coat with one hand, picked him up, raised him to the ceiling, shook him a couple of times, gave him a short stern lecture on fighting, then set him back down.

I doubt those boys fought on school grounds again.

[CyberAnt]

Well .. we can't have the slaves leaving the plantation .. it weakens the dems hold on the country.

[USMCWife6869]

Oh, I know, but these stupid reporters always do that. It's just a pet peeve. ;-)

[popdonnelly]

There was a time within the memory of some when fighting with the principal would have meant expulsion and an ass-whippin' from your parents.

[popdonnelly]

"there's an obviously leftist caller saying that teachers/adminstrators should never lay a hand on a child"

DNC member? Should ask the caller if they would send their child to Eastern.

[WesternPacific]

received a doctorate in educational leadership with a concentration in multicultural and urban affairs

This tells me he has done the research and knows the true causes of this urban schools low achieving status and was addressing them in the only way the people involved would understand.

[BluH2o]

Back in my days in the Corps we had a 'Gunny' who would administer a dollop or two of wup-butt on any Marine who went AWOL, acted in a insubordinate manner, or, showed up late for morning formation. He would take the guilty party into his office and close the door then all hell would break loose. No one who was unfortunate enough to be singled out for 'the treatment' ever allowed themselves to be a repeat offender.

[YOUGOTIT]

If the kid attacked him he should have beat the crap out of the non-child. We have gone on the wrong road when it comes to discipline. Too many so-called children are attacking adults and others. Discipline the criminals.

[Tarheel]

There was a time within the memory of some when fighting with the principal would have meant expulsion and an ass-whippin' from your parents.

This sort of treatment is well embedded in my memory. Anyone who suffered under this sort of punishment usually was not a repeat offender. There was a time when the school and the parents worked in conjunction for the well being of the child. I don't know which started falling down on the job first--the parents or the schools, either way many of the kids are turning into crooks and ne'er- do- wells.

[A Balrog of Morgoth]

First, there is no such thing as a former Marine (although I know many who wish there were in Murtha's case).

You are thinking of the term "ex-Marine".

Any Marine no longer on active duty can be called a former Marine.

"Ex-Marine" is reserved for traitors and BCD types. I think it'd be perfectly fine to call Murtha an ex-Marine.

[Emmett McCarthy]

It sure sounds like this principal was upsetting the corrupt apple cart of the D.C. school system. Of course, he's got no real chance in that Third World cesspool, but I give him credit for trying. From his background and education, it seems clear that he could have gone off to a pleasant and rewarding career in any number of areas, but he chose to try to "give back" to this community in a meaningful way.

[3AngelaD]

Washington DC schools are a national disgrace. They spend more money per pupil and have worse outcomes than any other district in the country. Anyone who tries to rectify this is punished, like this guy. I used to live on the Hill, and if you drove by Eastern during the school day, there were all kinds of illegal things going on outside of it.There have been shootings, assaults, knifings, ect. The district is administered by morons who were hired because they know and support Marion Berry, whose malevolent shadow still hovers over all. They brought this principle in to clean things up and now they are screwing him. They only thing they haven't done is call him a racist, for the obvious reason.</p>

[magslinger]

I had an assistant principal in jr. high who was a retired Marine officer.

Every Junior High and High school ought to have one. My JHS had one, too, except the Major (USMCR) wasn't retired at the time. The story sounds like a couple of incidents I heard of as well.

You didn't go to school in Michigan did you?

[fredhead]

No, I grew up in eastern NC, 10 miles from Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point and about 1 hour from MCB Camp LeJeune. Lots of Marines and Marine brats around.