An unidentified yearbook advisor at a New Jersey high school had been suspended after the pro-Trump logo on students’ clothing disappeared from the final photo that made the book.
via NYDN:
Grant Berardo, 17, says that he was shocked to find his “Trump: Make America Great Again” shirt had lost its political message in Wall High School’s “Behind the Scenes” book for 2016-2017.
Wall Township School Superintendent Cheryl Dyer said that the district is investigating why that image, and Trump’s name on another student’s sweater vest, were wiped out.
Another student’s quotation from Trump beneath her freshman class president photo also did not make the cut.
Dyer’s office confirmed to the Daily News Monday that an unidentified yearbook adviser was suspended pending an investigation.
Mrs. Susan Parsons is listed as the yearbook adviser on Wall High’s website.
Details about the suspension were not immediately available.
Dyer had previously told News that there was nothing in the school’s dress code that would prevent support for a political figure, and that administrators were not aware of the missing missive until after the yearbooks were distributed.
Berardo’s father Joe Berardo Jr., who views the picture swap as a freedom of speech issue, has said that he will not be satisfied until corrected yearbooks are reissued, and could pursue legal action if they are not.
The elder Berardo, the 51-year-old CEO of health services company Concordia Care, said that he met with Dyer and the high school’s principal on Monday and that they are working towards a solution as the school year winds down.
He said that a reprint and stickets to put inside the books are being considered as possible remedies, and that he views the experience as a “teaching moment” rather than a political fight.
As for his son, a rising senior, the father says his teen has taken the controversy in stride and quipped the other day, “I was struggling to find a topic for my college essay. I’ve got a lot of material now.”
Someone start a GoFundMe for this unidentified teacher ASAP!
