Posted on 06/09/2010 10:00:05 AM PDT by inflorida
Fourth-grade teacher Jarretta Hamilton was newly married and expecting a baby when she went to speak with her supervisors in April of last year.
But the administrators at Southland Christian School in St. Cloud parried her query about maternity leave with a query of their own: When did she conceive?
After Hamilton admitted that her child had been conceived about three weeks before her February 20, 2009, wedding, the school fired her.
Now she's suing in federal court.
"She wants compensation for the loss of the job, and she's seeking compensatory damages for emotional distress," said Edward Gay, Hamilton's attorney who filed the suit in U.S. District Court in Orlando.
In the complaint, which asks for a trial by jury, Hamilton alleges her termination was based on the fact of her pregnancy — and that the school offended her by disclosing the information about when she conceived to other school staffers and the parents of students Hamilton taught during the 2008-2009 school year.
Hamilton did not authorize the school to reveal that information, according to the complaint.
She also tried to keep the matter from getting to this point, Gay said. She filed discrimination charges with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Florida Commission on Human Relations, but has since exhausted her options.
A July 20, 2009, letter signed by school administrator Julie Ennis explains why the school's administrators thought they had to fire Hamilton:
"Jarretta was asked not to return because of a moral issue that was disregarded, namely fornication, sex outside of marriage," the letter reads. "The employment application, which she filled out, clearly states that as a leader before our students we require all teachers to maintain and communicate the values and purpose of our school."
(Excerpt) Read more at orlandosentinel.com ...
Thank you for clarifying. However, just punishment or discipline is not vengeance. It’s simply a consequence of an action or lack of action. Who is bearing false witness in this situation?
Not entirely, in this context. If the lady's behavior is otherwise notorious and/or unrepentant, the school is not required to "forgive" her to the point of maintaining an association with her.
As I've said, I suspect (without real proof) that the school is behaving poorly, and that the woman is well shut of them. So on that point, we agree.
Webster's: vengeance: "Date: 14th century
: punishment inflicted in retaliation for an injury or offense : retribution
retribution: 2 : the dispensing or receiving of reward or punishment especially in the hereafter
3 : something given or exacted in recompense; especially : punishment
"Who is bearing false witness in this situation?"
Bugs Bunny.
They are entitled to judge and disassociate themselves from such folks. I doubt she was though, and wouldn't have been teaching the kids that sex outside of marriage was fine.
“...school’s rules about sex with your fiance’.”
I wouldn’t reduce it to that. The issue involves much more. Lying, for starters. She signed an agreement knowing that she was pregnant. The woman admitted as much. She falsified her application and contract by withholding this information.
All private institutions of education require that you sign a contract which includes upholding their bylaws/rules/regulations. The school does not arbitrarily create these rules. The purpose of these regulations is to protect the health, welfare, and interests of the faculty and students.
If the teacher violated any of these rules, the administration was not only within their legal rights to terminate her employment, but they had a moral obligation to do so as well.
I find it rather revealing that you’re judging the school administration for unjustly firing this woman when you don’t have all of the facts surrounding this case. That, in and of itself, is unjust as well as unchristian.
“She probably had enemies there somewhere (churches can be full of very spiteful and bitter folk) and they were using this. Do remember that a certain Virgin was not married when she conceived, either, and that folks would have stoned her, too, if Joseph hadn’t done the right thing and married her.”
You must be kidding. How the heck do you know? Digging? The teacher told the administration about her premarital relationship. Furthermore, we don’t have a whole lot of details involving this case except what the defense is claiming.
When did she sign an agreement knowing that she was pregnant? She asked for maternity leave, and that’s what prompted the discussion.
Heck, even when she got engaged, she probably didn’t know she was pregnant.
Do they also ask them not to drink or smoke? How would the school handle it if they found out someone had a cigarette or drank a glass of wine at dinner.
I do appreciate that. I have a file in my pc documents titled: Trolls. My list is growing longer. America is at war, and there are Communists alive and well here on FR. I will not give them one inch of qualify time without bringing this to everyone’s attention.
Know your enemy.
The school administration is within their rights, as a private institution, to require that all employees must not drink or smoke. It’s their prerogative. When you sign the contract you are agreeing to uphold these rules and regulation. No one holds a gun to your head. You either abide by the rules, or seek employment elsewhere.
She didn’t know she was pregnant?
Your questions is irrelevant. What we do know is that the woman was terminated for a violation. Until we understand both sides of the story we should refrain from automatically assuming that the school was wrong to terminate this teacher.
I’d be careful throwing around the “unchristian” label.
Ultimately, she violated a school rule about having sex with her fiance. I’m not reducing it ... that’s what it is. They should mind their own business.
I find it rather revealing that you’re judging me for judging the school administration for judging her.
SnakeDoc
She got married 3 weeks after she got pregnant. She may not have even realized she was late at that point. Being stressed can impact your schedule also.
Some people don’t feel pregnant until about 8 weeks.
Christian school, Christian rules.
1, I give her points for honesty.
2, I wish they would hire me. Plenty of Christian teachers willing to uphold Christian teachings out there who are out of work.
No where in either the thread or the article was anything suggested about the woman being punished.
The children in the school were separated from the bad example of sex outside of marriage having no consequence.The woman encountered a consequence, but the purpose of the consequence was not to punish her per se.
There's no cite on that Wikipedia entry that pregnancy is a medical condition, and I can find no medical dictionary that claims pregnancy is a medically recognized disease, illness, or injury. What is the medical treatment to cure this pregnancy medical condition? Someone made it up, typically a leftist with an agenda, such as trying to get their health insurance collective to pay for their abortion "cure" due to being the unfortunate victim of catching a pregnancy medical condition, no fault of their own of course.
I asked my husband, a vice president at a major health insurance provider, if he considered pregnancy a medical condition. His response paraphrased? “What idiot said it wasn’t (he’s familiar with Bill O’Reilly’s infamous rant about the subject)? We process and pay for insurance claims for pregnancy on a daily basis. If it’s not a medical condition by modern standards then neither is impotence or hormone replacement therapy or acne...”
So I guess we agree to disagree.
And not all conditions have a “cure”. Although you could say childbirth is a cure for pregnancy and in many cases, it needs to be done in a medical setting, right?
Do you think pregnancy is a disability? The federal government recently redefined pregnancy a disability too so women could claim workman's disability payments. A woman's body making a baby shows amazing ability, not disability. Leftists play fast and loose with the language to get their way, which is usually getting you to pay their bills.
“The purpose of redefining pregnancy a medical condition was to get health insurance to pay for abortions.”
Um, no. Not even close. Read the history of midwives vs. doctors and you might just get yourself back on the right track with this subject.
I’m done with this discussion with you because, no offense, it’s just not productive.
Preposterous.
True, Jesus Christ was conceived outside of wedlock!
She gets props for being honest, but she probably could have said “I don’t know” and left it at that. Really, it’s difficult to know exactly when you become pregnant and it’s not like the child was her Flower Girl or anything.
But in the end I think the school wins. They can impose whatever standards they wish.
medical condition - A disease, illness, or injury
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.