Rhee's Firing Of DC Teachers Ruled "Improper"

(Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO)

75 former DC public school (DCPS) teachers – summarily fired while on probation in 2008 by former DC Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee (below) – won a big victory Monday when Arbitrator Charles Feigenbaum ruled that DCPS “improperly terminated these 75 teachers by not providing an explanation for their termination,” reports the Washington Teachers Union (WTU). Feigenbaum further ruled that the teachers be reinstated to an appropriate position within the school system and also receive two years back pay with benefits from DCPS. “This type of mass termination without explanation - the Michelle Rhee way of firing - was unheard of before Rhee and it is irresponsible and costly,” said WTU President Nathan Saunders. “The unfounded and unfair way of firing teachers under the Fenty/Rhee administration must change under the Gray administration to deliver high quality education and leverage limited financial resources. The WTU will legally pursue cases of our members who have been improperly terminated.” – adapted from a report on the WTU’s website; photo: Michelle Rhee talks with reporters after the April 8, 2010 announcement of reaching a tentative contract agreement with the Washington Teachers Union; photo by Adam Wright