Punishment upheld for St. Lucie teacher who had 5-year-old voted out of class

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Punishment upheld for St. Lucie teacher who had 5-year-old voted out of class

Disruptive student was in the process of being diagnosed with a type of

high-functioning autism

Coleen Wixon | TCPalm.com

5:01 AM EDT, April 1, 2009

ST. LUCIE COUNTY - The teacher who held a vote to oust 5-year-old Barton

from her kindergarten classroom lost her appeal for reinstatement.

Administrative law judge Claude Arrington on Tuesday upheld the St. Lucie School

Board's decision to suspend Portillo for a year without pay and remove her

tenure.

Schools Superintendent Lannon said he had not yet read the order and

declined to comment.

Portillo's attorney, of Stuart, also had no comment.

The school district proved Portillo violated the state's code of ethics for

teachers and school board rules in the May 21 incident. Portillo asked students

to say whether should be in the classroom while she tallied the votes on a

board, Arrington said.

was in the process of being diagnosed with a type of high-functioning

autism. His mother, Barton, did not testify at the hearing. Because she

was listed as a potential witness, she was not allowed to hear most of the

testimony.

" It's a step in the right direction, " Barton said of the judge's order. Barton

hoped Portillo would be fired.

" At least there will be some sort of punishment, " she said.

The judge sided with the district's assertion that Portillo exposed and the

other students to " unnecessary embarrassment or disparagement " and used an

inappropriate method of discipline. She also failed to exercise the best

professional judgment and failed to make a reasonable effort to protect

from harassment, he wrote.

Arrington said in his order that, except for last year's incident, Portillo was

a dedicated and excellent teacher over her 12-year career in St. Lucie County.

Many of Morningside's teachers and parents support her and her reputation

remains intact despite the negative publicity of the voting incident, the judge

wrote.

" There can be little doubt that [Portillo] has been traumatized by the negative

reactions to her misconduct. [Portillo] and her family have suffered

economically as a result of her suspension, " Arrington wrote.