PORTLAND, Maine — A former particular training instructor has filed a federal lawsuit towards the Portland Public Colleges and previous Superintendent Xavier Botana, announcing he used to be terminated in retaliation for talking out about lecture room staffing shortages.

The lawsuit filed ultimate week via Eric Poulin says Botana and the district violated the First Modification, the Maine Human Rights Act, the Civil Rights Act and the Maine Whistleblowers Coverage Act. The Maine Human Rights Fee reviewed the case and granted Poulin a Proper to Sue letter on March 27.

Poulin labored in a Portland Ok-1 particular training lecture room at Ocean Street Basic College from November 2020 till Aug. 31, 2022. All through his tenure, an worker beneath his supervision used to be arrested and charged with sexual exploitation of a minor involving a pupil in Poulin’s lecture room.

The district didn’t renew Poulin’s contract. The lawsuit says his contract used to be no longer renewed in retaliation for his “oppositional habits.” The district says it used to be because of normal efficiency.

The lawsuit alleges that Poulin again and again reached out to district management referring to workforce shortages and well being and protection dangers to scholars all the way through the 2021-22 faculty yr, each prior to and after the arrest of worker Benjamin Conroy, however the district didn’t have interaction.

Following the arrest, Botana publicly mentioned that Conroy used to be no longer by myself with the sufferer as a result of staffing shortages. As an alternative, he mentioned, “we imagine that the problem used to be a loss of explicitly documented expectancies round workforce being by myself with a pupil.”

Poulin mentioned that used to be misguided and on the time spoke publicly, together with to a Portland Press Usher in reporter, about staffing shortages throughout the district’s program for high-needs scholars with autism or different neurodevelopmental issues, developmental delays and excessive behavioral desires that Poulin labored in. Scholars within the Portland program, Seaside, continuously want one-on-one consideration.

On the time, a couple of different workforce in this system corroborated Poulin’s statements about staffing shortages, announcing they’d been short-staffed with out replacements or substitutes and that had resulted in protection demanding situations. Some mentioned they’d additionally introduced up staffing issues with district management and been disregarded.

Conroy pleaded responsible and is scheduled to be sentenced Might 15. He may just obtain anyplace from 15 to 30 years in federal jail for sexually abusing a 6-year-old pupil with autism in his care.

Prior to operating for the Portland faculty district, Poulin labored as a distinct training instructor in each the Windham and Gorham faculty departments between 2008 and 2020.

Even if the lawsuit claims the district’s choice to terminate Poulin’s contract used to be in retaliation for endured proceedings and public statements about staffing shortages, the Portland faculty district mentioned that its choice used to be tied to process efficiency.

“At Portland Public Colleges we imagine the verdict as as to if to appoint a instructor for a seamless contract to be probably the most vital selections we make and the usual we use is whether or not the instructor into account is the most productive particular person to fulfill the wishes of our scholars,” the district mentioned in a written commentary.

“Mr. Poulin didn’t meet this same old. We can not select the simple trail of warding off litigation over the most productive pursuits of our scholars and subsequently Mr. Poulin used to be no longer given a seamless contract to show right here.”

In his lawsuit, then again, Poulin mentioned the district had by no means expressed fear referring to his educating prior to he spoke out in regards to the Conroy incident.

Poulin referred inquiries to his lawyer, who wasn’t to be had to speak about the case.

Poulin’s lawsuit comes towards the backdrop of an educator workforce scarcity in Portland, Maine and across the country. The district in September mentioned its workforce scarcity used to be so critical that it pondered going to four-day faculty weeks for some scholars. Round the similar time, district training technicians mentioned staffing shortages had been so grave that pupil protection used to be at risk.

Portland legislation company Drummond Woodsum will shield each the district and Botana within the lawsuit. Botana resigned previous this yr. The college district’s insurer will incur the price of the protection for each defendants.

© 2023 Portland Press Usher in
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