Pro Tip: This is not the way to hold on to that “Teacher of the Year” award.
The Naked Teacher Principal has a growing number of variations. I think my favorite is still the Butt-Painting Teacher With A Bag Over His Head Variation, but this one is pretty good.
Mark Bringhurst, a fifth-grade teacher for eight years at Winslow Elementary School in New Jersey, and the Vineland School District’s 2011-12 teacher of the year, has been fired for streaking naked through an apartment complex parking lot. He was arrested in March after his mad dash and charged with public lewdness.
Bringhurst told police he did it on a dare from someone he met online (?), and that he had made the same nude run a year earlier. There was no indication that strong spirits were involved, which raises the interesting question: who would you consider more trustworthy, someone who runs around naked in public when he’s had too many, or someone who does it stone sober?
The Vineland School District really didn’t care: it suspended Bringhurst and has been trying to fire him ever since, on the reasonable grounds of conduct “unbecoming of a tenured teacher.” I think it is fair to say that an elementary school teacher who gets arrested for streaking has called into question his judgment, stability, and fitness as a role model and instructor of children. There is no doubt that he has embarrassed his employers, and raised legitimate questions not only about his own qualifications, but about the quality of individuals hired as teachers in the district. He has seriously damaged the trust of his students’ parents in both him and the school, and because of this must go.
His defense, predictably, was that his impulsive streaking was away from school and off hours, so it shouldn’t outweigh his outstanding record in the classroom. This is sometimes called the “Other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how did you like the play?” defense. Would a member of Congress, a judge, a CEO, a minister, a college president, a police officer, or a husband seeking custody of his daughter in a court proceeding have success with this argument? No, and neither should an elementary school teacher.
Bringhurst’s actions “are simply not consistent with the conduct that a fifth-grade elementary school teacher must display whether in or out of the classroom,” the arbitrator who decided the matter concluded. Bringhurst, married with three daughters, did say that he was no longer in touch with that mysterious cyber-friend who could talk him into taking off his clothes.
That’s a start, I guess.
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Pointer: The Daily Caller
Facts: The Daily Journal
Graphic: Bleacher Report
Ethics Alarms 
Isn’t this guy a little old to be doing stupid things on a dare… and from someone he’s never even met? To teach children, one must first have a mentality and maturity that supercedes their own.
At what age wouldn’t this be stupid?
Yes, but kids do dumb things because they lack the life experience to know that they’re dumb. And you can spank them to wise them up!
“His defense, predictably, was that his impulsive streaking was away from school and off hours, so it shouldn’t outweigh his outstanding record in the classroom. This is sometimes called the “Other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how did you like the play?” defense.”
Internally, I immediately demote anyone in terms of credibility who try to compartmentalize people in terms of their ‘multiple’ functions in life.
A conversation about a coworker at a job from many moons ago:
Asker “What do you think of this guy?”
Me “He’s lazy”
Asker “Ok, but what do you think of him as a parent, not as a worker?”
Me “I told you, he’s lazy.”
Asker “No, you don’t understand, he may be lazy as a worker, how is he outside of work?”
Me “No, you don’t understand. He is ONE human, he’s the same at work as he is in the rest of his life.”
We may be multiple functions in life. But we are ONE character.
So, they have been trying to fire him for 9 months. Wow. That means he might be getting paid to be on suspension. And he is probably taking up a slot they cannot fill with a new permanent teacher with the school system having to settle on a long term substitute. I understand Unions are to protect teachers rights, but sometimes I wonder who is protecting the rights of the children to a decent education from a qualified teacher who is an acceptable role model? Thank goodness there are more good than bad teachers – at least this has been true in my experience with my kids in 5 States and overseas, in Department of Defense Schools as well as Public and Private. Glad they could at least immediately suspend him so he doesn’t have access to the kids anymore.
And as for what age wouldn’t this be stupid? My boy has a College friend who had to streak across campus at the University of Illinois to be initiated into a Fraternity. That kid didn’t think it was stupid – thought it was funny and the ends justified the means. He loves his Fraternity life and being in that frat will serve him for his college years and beyond. My son thought it stupid and solidified his intention of never joining any Frat.
I’m with your son. Any frat with any kind of hazing at all would be off my list. Abuse of power. Make me humiliate myself to join the likes of you guys? Bye-bye, jerks.
I’d say that since streaking is (often) illegal, that fits disqualifying. If streaking were legal, however, we’d be having a different discussion.