The art teacher in the article below ended up losing his job. The ACLU is defending his actions as free speech. Apparently he did this prior to his teaching career. This brings up the question of how much someone's personal life should be examined if they are in a public position such as a school teacher? My college students were split 50/50 by this man's actions. Some said that his free speech was violated and others said that teachers are held to a higher level because parents entrust their children to them. What about you?
No, I'm not providing a link to his video. You'll have to do a search for it on YouTube. (Warning- some people will be offended when viewing the video. This is not for children)
Virginia Teacher Suspended for Painting With Rump
Wednesday, December 13, 2006
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,236201,00.html
RICHMOND, Va. — A Virginia school district has suspended an art teacher who they say may be setting a bad example for students with his own
extracurricular activity — rump painting.Stephen Murmer, a self-described "rump-printing artist," was placed on administrative leave Friday by the Chesterfield County school district.
Going by the name Stan Murmur, the teacher sells floral and abstract paintings that he calls "anthropometric monotypes" created by plastering his rump in paint and pressing it against a canvas. His paintings sell online for upwards of $900.
"I am certainly proud...," Stan Murmur said on a "Unscrewed With Martin Sargent" clip downloaded by FOXNews.com Wednesday on YouTube. "I do have a real job where I do have real clients, and I don't think they'd be too understanding if I was also the guy that painted with my rump."
In the clip, Murmur appeared wearing only a black thong and "Groucho" glasses to demonstrate a style of painting he learned in college.
posted by Incredible Art Department @ 12:33 PM
3 Comments:
I so have to ask my Step-Mother about this. She just retired from the Chesterfield High Schools and is doing some part time subbing for them now.
Let us know what she says...
Honestly, if you choose to go into a public service profession, you need to realize that you have to behave accordingly: ie, be aware that everything you do can have consequences towards your job, and some things could cause you to lose it - like, oh let's say, viewing internet and child porn, or sleeping with a minor, or sitting in a black thong and groucho marx glasses on a public access channel publicizing your slap-paint-on-butt-sit-on-canvas-and-sell-it painting technique. Unfortunately, these are things you do need to think about before doing or disclosing them, as teachers are held up to particular moral and professional standards due to the nature of the job. There may be things written into the teaching contract as well, this I don´t know.
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