BROOKLINE- Driscoll School students carried signs and wore t-shirts saying, “Save Mr. Chen” and “We Love Mr. Chen” as they rallied for the rehiring of their favorite teacher, Larry Chen.
Parents and students fought for the reinstatement of Chen, a social studies teacher, at the Brookline middle school on Oct. 13 at the school committee meeting.
Interim superintendent Dr. Joseph Connelly addressed students by saying, “you are actively participating in our democracy and we value your relationship with Mr. Chen.”
Chen was overheard using an explicative in the hallway after school hours in early October in front of two high school students by a coworker.
Maya Sekhar, an eighth grade student said, “He is a man of extraordinary charisma. Teaching for him is more than a job. We thank him for his patience and courage and the fact that he’s made a difference in many lives.”
Parents present at the meeting argued that the word used by Chen is used in everyday language and is not seen as offensive.
Sekhar’s father, Geary, said, “Chen has not been accused of any comment that is perverted. We are the biggest fans of Mr. Chen. The principle did not act with a proper back up plan.”
Parents were not pleased with the administrative decision that allowed a second grade teacher to take over middle school social studies and history classes. Parents at the meeting reiterated that they believed that the termination of Chen’s employment would harm the middle school experience
Around 30-40 students came up to the podium either alone or in pairs to testify for their teacher whom they called an “inspiration.”
“I could trust him with who I am. Thinking that I can’t have that rock to lean on is something I can’t have,” said Dean, a seventh grader, who said he found himself a confidant in Chen.
Two students present at the time that the word was used said that the board failed to verify facts of the incident with them. One student said that he did not register that the word had been used.
Both students are high school students and were working with Chen in an extra curricular afterschool program when the incident took place.
Ex-students of Driscoll School said that words such as the one used by Chen are used daily by high school teachers.
“Many people are under the impression that we are taking action against language but there are other allegations [against Chen],” Connelly said in his spoken statement
The committee however did not say what the other allegations were. Parents present at the meeting refuted the thought of other allegations.
“Trouble is inherent within our school system,” said Andrew Leong, a parent and lawyer who went on to say that “people spying on private conversations with contextualization” is not enough to initiate a termination.
Parents at the meeting were angered by the lack of initiative taken by Heidi Cook, principal of the school, and Dr. William H. Lupini, the superintendent at the time of the incident.
Neither Cook nor Lupini were present to answer the questions being asked by over a hundred parents and students.
At the end of the meeting no decision had been taken and committee members remained mum in response to questions being asked by students and parents.
“Firing Mr. Chen will affect people in the sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, and 10th grades and the entire Brookline community. This is an entire community supporting him and you can’t ignore it,” said Isabel Hoffman, a high school student and Driscoll School alumna.
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