Keene School Board Displays Good Sense
Kudos to Kristin Blais, Christopher C. Coates, Neil W. Donegan, Mark Nugent and Kris E. Roberts, for resisting the anti-drug hysteria. From The Sentinel:
Darrel L. Beymer will be allowed to continue teaching in the Keene School District — if he accepts terms set by the Keene Board of Education. …
For the past 16 years, Beymer has taught 3rd grade at Keene’s Symonds Elementary School.
In October, he pleaded guilty in Keene District Court to misdemeanor charges of possessing marijuana and criminal trespass. …
There’s been no evidence that Beymer used marijuana on school property or while acting as a teacher, which would have violated the district’s drug policy.
At the meeting, held on Nov. 29, board members Kristin Blais, Christopher C. Coates, Neil W. Donegan, Mark Nugent and Kris E. Roberts voted to reinstate Beymer.
Studies find that good teachers have a large positive impact on student performance, and Beymer fits this description. One commenter says, “I was at the hearing and … the majority of the evening was spent on his remarkable talent and the respect that the parents, teachers and children have for him.” It would have been a shame for the students of Symonds Elementary to lose this asset as a result of his “crime”.
Will May (“Skeptikos”) – Will is not a libertarian. He moved to Keene in 2008 for the Free State Project, and, after one too many books by Paul Krugman, took a sharp turn to the left. Having been critical of Free Keene in the past, he intends to be the opposition blogger, providing an alternative perspective and the occasional debate. He still has a strong anti-authoritarian streak, however, and is working to promote a liberal-libertarian alliance in Keene.
