Boy's Family Upset At Unflattering Awards

June 13, 2007

INDIANAPOLIS -- Sixth-grader Matt Porter didn't enjoy getting "Most Likely Not To Have Children" and "Sir Clowns-a-Lot" awards from two teachers at his school.

His parents aren't pleased, either.  

Matt said he received the awards in front of classmates during a ceremony at the Decatur Intermediate Learning Center at the end of the recently finished school year. His mother and his stepfather have asked the Decatur Township school system to reprimand the teachers, and they want an apology.

"Words cut deeper than any knife could. They hurt," said his stepfather, Joseph Sims. "When you hurt a child like that, you not only hurt him mentally, but it does hurt physically because you withdraw within yourself. That is what Matthew has done."

The certificates were signed by the teachers who distributed them. Matt recalled what the ceremony was like.

"I was standing in the middle of (the two teachers), and they (were) reading them off," he said. "Everyone was laughing."

Matt felt humiliated.

"They (were) putting us down and everything," he said. "That is not what their job is for, to put kids down. They are supposed to teach us."

Amy Sims, Matt's mother, said she met with a school official over the matter but was not satisfied with the response.

"She just told me that the teachers would call and apologize to him, and we've not heard anything at all," Amy Sims said.

Gary Pellico, spokesman for the school system, declined to say whether the teachers have been disciplined. He said system officials regret the incident.

"We don't feel like it was an appropriate awards ceremony at all," Pellico said. "It wasn't part of the school's award ceremony, and it will not happen again."

Amy Sims said her son needs counseling because of the awards. The school has offered it, but an agreement on who will provide it has not been reached, Thomas reported.

NYC Teen Tormented Because His Name Is 'Osama'

June 12, 2007

by Andrew Kirtzman
(CBS) NEW YORK The family of a Staten Island teen who says he was constantly harassed in school by his teachers because his name is "Osama" is suing the school system after they say school officials never did anything to prevent the harassment.

His name is -- or was -- Osama Al-Najjar. Ever since his suicide attempt, he's called himself "Sam." His story begins two years ago at Tottenville High School.

"This one time in gym I was sitting and it was the beginning of the semester and he said, 'Where's Osama?' and I said, 'Right here.' And he goes, 'I thought you'd be in back of a cave somewhere,'" Osama said.

Al-Najjar says the taunts over his name continued for more than two years. Over and over again, he says those he looked up to equated the Jordanian-born teenager with the infamous terrorist.

His parents say they held countless meetings with school officials who apparently did nothing to stop the ostracism. Osama says the students at his school did not participate in the tormenting. In fact, he says they often sympathized with him over the treatment he was receiving from his teachers.

"The students were more understanding than the teachers. The teachers are the ones who called him names -- bin Laden, terrorist. One of the teachers told him not to bother to come to class because no matter what he did he's not gonna pass,'" says Osama's mother, Suad Abuhasna.

After Osama's grades plunged and he fell into a deep depression, he eventually tried killing himself. He later dropped out of school.

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June 02, 2007

LAURENS, S.C. —  A former elementary school teacher pleaded guilty Friday to having sex with an 11-year-old student and was sentenced to 10 years in prison, a prosecutor said.

...The case inflamed racial tensions because the student is black, and some black residents had argued that the teacher was getting lenient treatment by the courts.

...The boy's family was satisfied with the sentence, Peace said.

Some black residents were upset by the handling of the case and another involving a white teacher and black student, particularly the release of the teachers on bail. They said the cases show how crimes by whites against blacks are treated less seriously than other offenses.

Utility Worker Killed, Teacher Hurt During Egg Drop Experiment at Washington School

OTHELLO, Wash. —  A utility truck's elevated bucket collapsed during a school demonstration, killing a utility company employee and injuring a teacher as about 600 children watched, authorities said.

The pair had been lifted 20 to 30 feet in the air Thursday when the boom separated from its base and fell, ...The pair were participating in an annual "egg drop" science demonstration when the accident occurred. The demonstration involves protecting eggs in various containers and dropping them from a certain height to see which land intact.

Besides hundreds of children from kindergarten through sixth grade, staff members and some parents were watching, said George Juarez, Othello School District superintendent. He said the children were "a good distance away."