Still On Campus With Case Pending
An embattled teacher accused of verbal and physical abuse of students at P.S. 101 in Forest Hills was removed from the classroom and placed on administrative duty, it was announced last Friday, Sept. 5.
A protest outside the school the previous day drew parents that claimed their kids are afraid to attend classes taught by the teacher, Richard Parlini. City Council Member Karen Koslowitz joined parents at the rally to support his removal from the school.
“At this time, I am satisfied that the teacher in question will not be giving instruction in a classroom,” Koslowitz said in a statement Friday. “Future developments, if any, will be closely monitored by my office.”
Parlini reportedly Mot recently, taught first-grade science, it was reported. Last year he allegedly grabbed a student by the neck and shook him in front of the class.
The previous year, he reportedly shoved the same student.
Parent Association Vice President Thomas Renna told the Times Newsweekly Monday “I think he should be temporarily assigned somewhere else until it is ironed out.”
Though Parlini was reassigned, he will continue to work in the building, it was noted.
Renna currently has a child at P.S. 101 and another that graduated from the school. He said that Parlini has “always had a reputation,” and that “it goes back at least a decade.”
He is concerned that Parlini will remain in the building, and feels he should be assigned to a building without kids.
“We have concerns about that,” Renna said. “Our kids could be targets. Parents are concerned he’s still in the building.”
It has not been determined if Parlini will ever be allowed back into the classroom.
According to published reports, Campbell Brown, a former CNN anchor and founder of the Partnership for Educational Justice, said the group plans to file a lawsuit in New York State on behalf of the parents of P.S. 101 aimed at forcing reform of the teacher tenure law which they claim denies students’ constitutional rights to a “sound basic education.”
