By Rebecca Shalomoff
In impassioned pleas, speaker after speaker addressed the school board, along with the hundreds in attendance, at the March 19 meeting, insisting that bigotry cannot be tolerated. They demanded district officials take immediate action to ensure that such behavior is not accepted in the district.
While the names of the parties involved in the altercation were not revealed at the meeting, sources indicate that Lawrence High School physical education teacher and football coach Lou Andre allegedly threatened English teacher and junior varsity football coach Dave Yaker with violence and is accused of uttering the words little Jew and kike.
There is nothing personal about this, Yaker said at the meeting. Bigotry and hatred contradict the profession we stand for. Overlooking this would be an injustice. We should never teach our children that it is OK to hate.
During the meeting, many teachers spoke on behalf of Yaker. I'm here to take a stand against what he experienced, social studies teacher Michael Alter said. If such behavior is tolerated then Lawrence is indeed a changed place.
Superintendent of Schools Dr. Mark Rosenbaum said in a telephone interview that the matter has been investigated and a decision has been made, but he said he was unable to disclose any details.
Teachers and residents expressed further concern that Andre, who is up for tenure this year, will not be reprimanded for his behavior and will continue to be employed by the district. Though personnel matters are usually handled by district officials, they urged the school board to get involved.
Trustee Dr. Sol Blisko disagrees. In a telephone interview, he said, I think this is something that should be handled at the superintendent level. Before [Andre] is tried in a public kangaroo court, he is entitled to a fair hearing. I think his union ought to defend him.
I think the situation is to be handled administratively, trustee Dr. Asher Mansdorf said.
Lawrence Public Schools Athletics Director Pat Pizzarelli did not comment on the specifics of the conflict, but said Andre has been an excellent teacher and coach during the five years of his employment with the district.
Andre is also very popular among the students. Rob Blount of Inwood, a Lawrence High School senior and co-captain of the football team, said his coach, teacher and friend is a very open-hearted man. Andre is always looking out for the students, he said. He works hard to encourage coaches from colleges to observe the student players, which enabled Blount to get a scholarship to C.W. Post for next year.
Blount relayed comments made by Andre at the beginning of the football season, which characterizes his unyielding devotion to the students: I'll fight for you guys no matter what. I don't care what they do to me, but you are my kids and I will fight for you till the end.'
As for racial slurs, Blount said he never heard Andre make such comments or exhibit intolerant behavior.
The way people are portraying him is really wrong, he added. He doesn't have many teachers on his side, but we all love him and will do anything to protect him.
