Florida teacher fired after writing 'dark roast,' 'extra cream' above student photos
School board members have fired the Lake Worth High School teacher who put photos of students on his classroom board and labeled them with coffee terms like "dark roast" and "extra cream."
Cary Altschuler, an Advanced Placement statistics teacher, in late February posted three students' photos on the board with the titles "extra cream," "medium roast" and "dark roast" above their heads, according to two sources inside the classroom at the time and a photo provided to The Palm Beach Post. The Post does not reveal the identity of juveniles not involved in the criminal justice system without the permission of their parents.
News of the incident spread quickly around the school and to teachers via social media posts.
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Principal Elena Villani apologized in a letter sent home to parents for the "racially charged" incident that she called "egregiously inappropriate."
During the school district's investigation, Altschuler was moved to a job in which he had no contact with students.
In Superintendent Mike Burke's recommendation to fire Altschuler, he said the teacher was accused of ethical misconduct, inappropriate comments and interactions with students, and failure to follow district policies. An investigation found those charges to be substantiated.
His termination was approved Wednesday with no conversation from board members.
Altschuler previously declined to comment on the investigation into his actions. He has until Aug. 24 to appeal the decision. If he does not, the firing will become effective Aug. 25.
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Lake Worth High teacher was previously fined for inappropriate comments toward students in Broward
Altschuler has worked for the district and taught at Lake Worth High since August 2020.
But he's previously gotten in trouble for his conduct at schools.
In 2018, he was formally reprimanded, placed on two years of probation and fined $750 by the Florida Department of Education after Broward County students reported that he made inappropriate and sometimes sexual comments about female students and what they were wearing. One said he also made comments about her mother's appearance.
His school district personnel file in Palm Beach County shows he noted his prior discipline when he applied to the district for the job at Lake Worth High.
But the file does not include any details about the discipline or the complaints that led to the state's investigation.
Katherine Kokal is a journalist covering education at The Palm Beach Post. You can reach her at kkokal@pbpost.com. Help support our work, subscribe today!
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Palm Beach County teacher Cary Altschuler fired after coffee labels
