After 21 years in public education, I can definitively state that I've heard some of the strangest things and been involved in some unordinary situations. I reflect back to my time in the teaching credential program. I thought I could change the world and everybody would be on the same page - all the time - for students! While I do believe the majority of educators do what is best for students, there are always the select handful who are here for their ego, their career, themselves.
But back to those strange stories. I've had students ask me to alter attendance for them in order to avoid police investigations. I've had students say inappropriate sexual things to me - and think nothing of it. I've had colleagues who were caught engaging in "inappropriate adult behavior" while on campus. And this was all while I was a classroom teacher - the stakes just increased when I became a vice principal.
Early in my administrative career, a large fight broke out on Valentine's Day. When the other administrator and I arrived on scene, all parties tried to flee - including the females who were just observing. One of them dropped in the middle of the road and had a miscarriage. (And yes, her boyfriend kept running and wasn't there for her.) The social media bullying that takes place made my head spin - and put the fear of God in me in regards to my own children. So many more crazy stories from that chapter of my career - from students being caught in their vehicle after a dance having sex, to students being caught doing something similar on campus behind the music building. I think that interview with the male student went something like this: "What were you and the young lady doing?" His response, "Well Mr. Fishtrom, I was giving her oral pleasure." How was I supposed to respond????
In my current position as Director of Instructional Technology, I hear and experience some situations that I cannot even wrap my head around. As we installed wireless access points in every classroom, a teacher kicked the installation crew out of her classroom because she didn't want it. (Who owns that room???) An employee denied misuse on the computer, though the trail she left behind indicated she was doing a lot of "non-work." One teacher asked how to clear out his chrome browser history, because he was looking at adult websites at home over the weekend. Just last week an employee asked me how much we monitor and filter end-user's web navigation. Why did she ask? Because she is working with a student that has a diaper fetish; she was afraid that her searches about this subject would be flagged by my department. A diaper fetish. Wow.
Sitting in leadership team meetings is even more enlightening, as we all share these types of stores. I really think we should collate our stories and write a book. Maybe only educators would appreciate it and relate to these events. I do remember when I was getting my credential, a friend said, "You only have to work 180 days a year and once your curriculum is set, you're home free for life." Probably the most inaccurate statement ever thrown my way.
Still have no regrets with my career choice.... never have and never will (even though I would love to hit that darn PowerBall Lottery.) Oh, the stories I could write...
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