The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Some say DeKalb punished teacher far more than he punished student
A revered coach at a DeKalb County elementary school is under pressure by the district to resign, according to parents, who maintain this is a rush to judgment about a teacher with an exemplary record.
The recent suspension of Henderson Mill Elementary coach James O’Donnell — Dr. OD to many — over how he disciplined a student spurred a revolt at the north DeKalb school, where parents protested outside the building and overflowed a board meeting on behalf of the 39-year DeKalb veteran. Alumni rallied for him with Facebook pages, letters to the district, and a Go Fund Me effort for legal fees if O’Donnell fights to keep his job. As of Sunday, the campaign had raised nearly $20,000. On Saturday, supporters held a #IStandWithOD community fitness event.
At last week’s board meeting and on social media, parents — several of whom had O’Donnell as a teacher themselves — shared stories of timid and nonathletic children turned confident and agile under his tutelage. “He has coached my husband, sister-in-law, and both our children,” said parent Kristen Bryant. “Our 6-year-old daughter is currently a student and adores him. She couldn’t wait to tell him about completing her first 5-K over the Thanksgiving break because she knew he would be so proud of her achievement. You see, he pushes the children to new levels of daily physical fitness while building immense confidence in them that many alumni will still credit to him many years and years later.”
On a rainy day last month, O’Donnell was teaching a physical education class in the gym, a separate building connected to the main school building by a covered walkway. When a 10-year-old student acted up, O’Donnell made him stand outside the door to the walkway to simmer down, according to
supporters. They contend the boy left the covered area and went into the rain. However, his mother told a TV station her son remained outside for 30 minutes in the cold and the rain, condemning the discipline as dangerous.
A former assistant to O’Donnell said any accusation the coach put a child at risk lacks context. “People should know that if the boy was standing where he was told, he would be in the direct line of sight of an adult at all times,” said Kirk Lunde, a Tucker parent who was a paraprofessional under O’Donnell in 2012. “The coach can have an entire grade in that gym. There is no room for a child to stand on the sideline or against the wall in the gym because kids are standing along that wall waiting for their turn in the game. I have absolute comfort in what the coach did – there is no alternative as the coach can’t leave the other students to take the child to the principal’s office.”
With 300 trailers across DeKalb Schools, Lunde noted children are allowed to walk outside between buildings all the time. “How do kids get to the bathrooms? Teachers aren’t escorting them to the bathroom. I can’t believe Dr. Green believes a child being outside the door but visible to an adult and under a cover was considered unsupervised any more than all those students who need to use the restroom.”
DeKalb’s suspension of the coach points to what some parents consider an increasingly hard line on teacher transgressions, even in circumstances where the teacher’s mistake was inadvertent and a blip in an otherwise esteemed career.
Two other examples that parents cite: the removal of a French teacher at the DeKalb School of the Arts a year ago after taking a student suggestion during a school lockdown to play a brief YouTube clip from the animated French classic, “The Triplets of Belleville,” which a parent deemed objectionable, and the transfer out of the classroom of a German teacher at Chamblee Charter High School in June for assigning skits to his fifthyear German students that some complained included vulgar material.
The coach’s supporters warned the school board that teacher morale will suffer if a teacher of O’Donnell’s reputation is forced out of his job. “I had the opportunity to work with Dr. OD for 15 years,” said Elaine Mach. “I remember the first year I was at Henderson Mill and I went to an airfield to watch him jump out of an airplane to raise money for the school and new P.E equipment. I was shocked someone would be willing to skydive for the first time in their life to raise money for their school. Who does that? Only Dr. OD. I also know for a fact that over the years he helped several students financially so they could go to college. This is just a few reasons why I am astonished and terribly saddened by the way this extraordinary teaching career may end.”
In response to the controversy, DeKalb Schools said: “The DeKalb County School District is committed to behaviors that provide a safe and healthy learning environment for students. The district does not discuss personnel matters and cannot speak directly to your questions about the individual you noted. However, the occurrence has been investigated and DCSD has taken appropriate action based on its findings.”