UPDATE (01/29/2014): She got reinstated. I take no credit for it.
Bonus points if you get the reference.
Yet another teacher has been suspended (which may or may not be code for “fired”) after daring to reveal that she is in fact naked underneath all of her clothing. This time she’s an elementary school special education teacher (or teacher’s aide, depending on the news source). An “anonymous source” sent copies of not-quite-nude pictures to the school’s administration, which is a real classy move:
A Fitchburg teacher’s aide who moonlights as a model of sexy lingerie has sparked a debate over what conduct is befitting of an educator outside the classroom.
Many people seem to have no issue with Kaitlin Pearson’s modeling portfolio, while others are questioning whether someone who works with young children should be posing for racy photos.
Regardless, Superintendent of Schools André Ravenelle placed Pearson on paid administrative leave early Friday afternoon after the district was anonymously sent a packet containing her modeling photos.
Pearson has been working in one of South Street Elementary School’s special-education programs as a full-time classroom assistant for a small group of students since November.
***
Ravenelle said he was not aware of Pearson’s modeling photos until school officials were mailed the anonymous packet. A similar packet was also sent to the Sentinel & Enterprise. Ravenelle placed Pearson on administrative leave before speaking with a reporter for this article.
A short note, typed in all capital letters, that was included in the packet sent to the Sentinel & Enterprise read, in part: “Can you believe that this girl was hired to work with special education children in the Fitchburg schools?!!” [Emphasis added.]
What might be different this time is that people seem to be voicing support for her:
Fitchburg residents had varying opinions on her suspension.
A number of people in downtown on Thursday were of the opinion that there is a difference between personal and professional lives. William Irizarry said everyone has a personal life and questioned how this was different than a lawyer having a drink when they weren’t working.
Fitchburg resident Joanne Huse agreed. “What really upsets me is the person who perpetrated this.” She added, “To me, that is the real crime.”
“What she does in her own private life is her business,” said Adam Doss, another resident of Fitchburg. He added a word of caution though. “What you put on the internet you need to be careful about.”
Some of the pictures appear on her publicly-available ModelMayhem page (kinda NSFW), where she states that “I’m balancing modeling with a full time job, so my time is very precious,” and “I DO NOT SHOOT FULL NUDES! I will only shoot implieds with a photographer I know and trust.” She has also been named ModelsMania Magazine’s “2014 model of the year,” (also kinda NSFW) so it’s not like this was all happening underground. It’s not even remotely illegal.
In a perfect world, this might be a starting point for a discussion of how little teachers get paid, and how they might have to supplement their income by other means in today’s economy. Then again, that might not describe this particular teacher’s situation at all. She might just enjoy modeling. This might, therefore, spark a conversation about how people can pursue their own interests outside of the classroom, even modeling, and that maybe pictures posted to the internet should not have much bearing on elementary-school-age children—or at least, that parents/guardians/teachers can explain or contextualize these things for kids without completely losing their shit.
But that probably won’t happen, because boobs.
Photo credit: Via weheartit.com.
