Following a 60-day suspension handed down by the Voorheesville school district for charges of misconduct, high school physical education teacher Robert Crandall will resume work with the district at the end of January, but not in a classroom capacity.
Crandall, 54, was suspended for four charges of misconduct, insubordination and conduct unbecoming a teacher that occurred in the 2002-2003 and 2003-2004 school years. Crandall’s suspension began on Oct. 21 and came after a recommendation by an objective hearing officer in the case. Crandall has been with the district since 1978.
According to Superintendent Linda Langevin, after his return Crandall will be placed in a temporary appointment until the conclusion of this school year. Crandall will be designated to write curriculum for the district’s PE programs.
Crandall will be appointed to complete the district’s kindergarten through 12th grade curriculum for PE and to complete a PE curriculum for students with special needs. Both tasks are in line with the district’s recent institution of curriculum mapping.
Langevin said she estimated the 80 percent of the calls that came into her office regarding the matter were in favor of not returning Crandall to the classroom.
According to Langevin, the idea to place Crandall in the temporary position and effectively keep him out of the classroom was discussed in a private meeting with the school board on Nov. 13. Additionally, Langevin said the issued was brought to the attention of the physical education department and the teachers union.
We support her moving forward, said school board president David Gibson.
Assignment of teachers’ duties does not require a resolution by the board, and is left up to administration. Gibson said as representatives of the community, the board provided input about the decision.
`It’s a matter in which the board has been listening to the community,` Gibson said.
Gibson said that while the board was not pleased with the circumstances of the situation, the board, as a body, is supportive of how it’s being handled.
In September 2003, high school Principal Mark Diefendorf initiated an investigation of Crandall. The focus of the inquiry was an incident of misconduct that took place that same month. The misconduct stemmed from an incident in which Crandall asked a male student: `Who is that hot (sexy) blond you’re running with?`
In March 2004, it was reported that Crandall made another inappropriate comment.
According to the report, while collecting information about students, Crandall asked a female ninth grade student where she lived, and when she asked why, Crandall responded something to the effect of: `So I can follow you home and come to your house and murder you in your sleep.`
The additional charge that led to Crandall’s suspension was his alleged retaliation against two students in 2003 who had filed complaints against him in 2001. Both students said that in 2003, Crandall took retaliatory action that included treating them differently from other students in the class, and questioning or making comments to the students about the prior complaints. Following the initial 2001 complaints, Crandall had been given a directive not to retaliate against the students.
Vice president of the board, C. James Coffin, said he accepts that Crandall must be accepted back in some capacity.
`My position is, I don’t want him in the classroom,` said Coffin, citing Crandall’s record of ignoring prior counseling considering issues of misconduct. `If that’s the caliber of the person he is and the employee he is, he’s not welcome.`
According to the hearing’s report, Crandall had been counseled in the past for a variety of reasons.
In 1994, Crandall was counseled for walking out of a conference and in 2001 he was counseled for `slapping students on the bottom.`
In February 2003 he was issued a letter of reprimand for allowing the boys junior varsity basketball team to swim in the pool before it was open.
Additionally, he had been counseled verbally and in writing concerning inappropriate comments to students.
Langevin said it has yet to be determined in what capacity Crandall, who is also a soccer coach, would return next year.
`We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it,` said Langevin.
When the recommendations were initially released by the hearing officer, Langevin said that she was hoped for dismissal, not only because of the allegations but also because Crandall had been repeatedly counseled in the past.
It was the hearing officer’s belief that a 60-day unpaid suspension would alert Crandall to the severity of his misconduct.
Kathy Fiero, president of the Voorheesville Teacher’s Association, said, `We don’t have a stance other than to respect the process and the hearing officer’s decision.`
Efforts to reach Crandall and his lawyer were unsuccessful.“
