Rocklin trainer punished for exhibiting youngsters the information

Final fall, Granite Oaks Center College trainer Katie Ragan started a seventh-grade English class the best way she had practically each different: with a 10-minute information clip.

She thought nothing of it. It was from CNN 10, previously often called CNN Scholar Information, an easy, fact-based information program for center and highschool college students. She had proven the every day information program to college students numerous occasions, as had many different lecturers across the nation, together with at Ragan’s Rocklin college.

This specific video, from Oct. 4, centered partly on a California regulation that might have required public college college students to be vaccinated towards COVID. The clip characterised the regulation as controversial and detailed parental views in assist of and towards the requirement.

Ragan thought her college students, most of whom are 12 years previous, can be particularly within the phase because it was about California. She requested them to summarize the clip.

“I don’t need their opinions,” Ragan mentioned. “Simply abstract.”

And that ought to have been the top of one other unusual day in one among Rocklin’s seventh-grade school rooms. As an alternative, it was the start of a nightmare that Ragan continues to be residing eight months later.

Lower than every week after exhibiting the clip to her college students, Ragan acquired an electronic mail from Josh Nagelmann, the daddy of a pupil in her class, who was offended that she had proven a clip about COVID vaccinations. It was the primary of a collection of threatening and bullying emails she acquired from him over the course of the following few weeks.

“In case you brainwash our youngsters anymore with this propaganda you’ll be held liable in courtroom,” Nagelmann wrote to her on Oct. 11. “I like to recommend you come to the district assembly on the twentieth as a result of I will probably be placing you on discover.”

Initially, Ragan responded to Nagelmann. However she stopped partaking because the emails “received nastier and nastier,” she mentioned.

“What sort of trainer pushes propaganda on our youngsters!?” Nagelmann wrote to Ragan on Oct. 25. “Higher be very cautious what you preach within the classroom,” he continued, including, “you don’t have to fret about me as my child isn’t getting it however essentially the most harmful folks on this world are these (whose) youngsters has been injured or killed out of negligence.”

Ragan, who has been a trainer within the district since 1998, was greatly surprised.

“This has by no means occurred to me, ever,” she mentioned in an interview. “You get dad and mom who aren’t joyful, however not like this.”

Vaccine threats

She requested Granite Oaks Principal Jay Holmes whether or not she ought to cease exhibiting clips of CNN 10. He mentioned “completely not” and reassured her that “tons” of lecturers use this system, Ragan recalled.

In response to Ragan, Holmes dismissed the mother or father and the considerations he had raised in regards to the video, assuring the trainer he would maintain the difficulty.

However Holmes didn’t maintain it. In response to Ragan, the principal didn’t attain out to Nagelmann till the top of October, after the mother or father had despatched her a number of threatening emails, which have been supplied to The Bee, and publicly excoriated her on social media and in school board conferences.

Nagelmann didn’t reply to a number of requests for remark.

Throughout the Rocklin Unified college board assembly on Oct. 20, Nagelmann singled out Ragan by identify, violating a district coverage that daunts members of the general public from figuring out employees members for security and privateness causes. Members of the board didn’t reprimand him or reduce him off.

“If it’s all CNN, why not hearken to OAN?” Nagelmann requested on the assembly, referring to the far-right, pro-Trump One America Information Community. “I don’t assume (the board is) the issue; it’s the lecturers.”

He closed by threatening members of the college board.

“In case you guys push this vaccine, … you higher be careful,” Nagelmann mentioned. “If one among these dad and mom’ children will get damage or killed, and if any of you guys voted for that, I’m simply telling you — you’ll be able to name the DOJ. You don’t have to fret about me; I might fear about mama and papa bear.”

Stress go away

The subsequent day, college and district directors visited Ragan’s classroom and requested how they may assist her. Later that day, Rocklin Unified Superintendent Roger Inventory confirmed up. Ragan was shocked he had are available particular person. “He’s both anxious about one thing or he does really feel unhealthy,” she recalled considering.

Inventory “apologized on behalf of the board and says he’s so sorry, they need to’ve stopped the assembly,” Ragan mentioned. She mentioned she requested the superintendent whether or not she ought to cease exhibiting CNN 10 at school, however he additionally mentioned no, noting that it was acceptable beneath the California Training Code.

Inventory mentioned he had visited Ragan to “see how she was doing” and “assured her that we wished college students to study to assume critically and that utilizing supplemental sources was useful to realize that objective.” Each Scott Roark, a spokesman for the California Division of Training, and Rocklin Unified spokesman Sundeep Dosanjh confirmed that CNN 10 is consistent with steerage outlined by the code.

Regardless of assurances that college and district leaders would assist her, Ragan stored receiving emails from Nagelmann. He additionally posted her identify, college and an electronic mail she had despatched him on social media, Ragan mentioned.

“I used to be having a nasty time at this level,” she recalled. “I used to be publicly shamed. My fame received crapped on.”

She out of the blue felt uneasy about going out in public, anxious about attending group occasions and received nervous about going locations as routine because the fitness center.

“This was my consolation zone, and now I’m not comfy anymore,” she mentioned.

At this level, a consultant from the California Lecturers Affiliation stepped in, advising Ragan to take a stress-related go away. On Oct. 28, Ragan left her class, and she or he didn’t return.

In the meantime, the college principal and district directors met with Nagelmann however with none consultant for Ragan. Nagelmann requested that directors ship a letter to all dad and mom of Ragan’s college students saying the video she had proven was biased and regarding.

Appallingly, they did.

“Our employees will probably be taking a look at how bias might be seen in numerous media shops and will probably be discussing how we will preserve biased opinions out of our classes for college kids,” Holmes wrote to oldsters of Ragan’s college students on Nov. 15 — although to not the dad and mom of scholars in different lessons that had additionally watched CNN 10.

District turns its again

On Fb, Nagelmann posts typically about conspiracy theories starting from “chemical trails” to pretend NASA and CIA paperwork that “show” the Earth is flat and never rotating. On Feb. 25, he posted that CNN “makes use of propaganda and thoughts management to get folks upset and emotional.”

However the conspiracy theories Nagelmann posts about most are associated to COVID, together with false claims that COVID vaccines are inherently harmful, inflicting blood clots and even dying. A number of of Nagelmann’s posts seem with a “False Info” warning from Fb, and he has posted not less than 3 times about being briefly suspended from the platform.

Why would Rocklin Unified directors, who simply weeks earlier wrote off the mother or father, go on to kowtow to him whereas kicking a veteran educator to the curb?

For these conversant in Rocklin Unified’s management, the transfer, whereas dismaying, isn’t all that shocking. Nearly because the begin of the pandemic, college board members have catered to a small however vocal minority of anti-mask and anti-vax dad and mom and group members. In June 2021, the district formally urged Gov. Gavin Newsom to elevate a classroom masks mandate.

In March, the board authorised a contract for authorized providers with Advocates for Religion and Freedom, a nonprofit regulation agency that believes “America was based on Judeo-Christian rules” and that “conventional household construction” and “non secular freedoms” are being eroded. The district is a plaintiff in litigation over Newsom’s use of his emergency powers in the course of the pandemic.

‘Not supporting lecturers’

The letter to oldsters of Ragan’s college students quickly began circling amongst Granite Oaks lecturers. Disturbed at Ragan’s therapy, a few of her fellow lecturers confronted Holmes. In response to one present Rocklin Unified trainer who requested to stay nameless for concern of retribution from district leaders, the principal admitted that CNN 10 was not biased and that Ragan had performed nothing mistaken.

Dosanjh, the district spokesman, mentioned “a handful of oldsters expressed concern to the college principal” about the usage of CNN 10 within the classroom. He additionally mentioned that the principal acknowledged that the CNN 10 clip Ragan confirmed was evenhanded, presenting “either side of the argument.”

So why was the letter despatched to oldsters? Ragan’s colleagues have been left questioning the identical factor.

“I used to be very shocked (at) how a lot management … the board (gave) to a really vocal minority of oldsters,” mentioned the trainer who requested to not be recognized. “I notice dad and mom must be concerned of their youngsters’s training, however I really feel on this occasion, the dad and mom have been capable of bully their solution to the consequence they wished.”

The district’s counsel lastly despatched Nagelmann a letter demanding that he stop and desist contacting the trainer a month after his first electronic mail. Two days later, Nagelmann confirmed up at one other college board assembly to complain a couple of “historical past trainer” who had proven her class CNN 10.

Travis Mougeotte, president of the Rocklin Lecturers Skilled Affiliation, mentioned the district’s dealing with of the scenario “was a first-rate instance of not supporting lecturers.”

“Ultimately, what occurred was a whole lot of college students misplaced a very good trainer for many of their college yr,” Mougeotte mentioned.

Substitute lecturers took over Ragan’s class for the rest of the time period.

Ragan uncertain about return

Ragan continues to be deciding whether or not or not she’s going to return to Granite Oaks subsequent college yr. Her resolution largely hinges on an unresolved staff’ compensation declare relating to her stress go away. The district is difficult her declare, and Ragan is anxious she would possibly lose cash she is owed.

Dosanjh mentioned Rocklin Unified “is dedicated to making sure the psychological well being and well-being of all of its workers.”

One solely has to have a look at what occurred to Ragan for that assertion to fall flat. Deserted by a college principal she beforehand adored working with and district leaders she trusted, Ragan was vilified for exhibiting an innocuous information clip to her college students in a district that proved incapable of standing as much as extremism.

Though Ragan has signed a letter of intent to return, she is uncertain whether or not she’s going to. If her case will not be resolved earlier than college begins, she will probably be pressured to take an unpaid go away of absence. And even when she is ready and prepared to return to class, she wonders whether or not Granite Oaks would be capable of accommodate her ongoing security considerations.

“This dad, on back-to-school night time, might stroll into my classroom,” Ragan mentioned. “How do they preserve that from occurring? They’ll’t. They created this mess, and so they put me within the place of getting to go away the profession that I beloved.

“I’ve been a very good trainer. I used to be offended on the finish of the college yr as a result of I missed out, however now I’m drained and I’m unhappy it’s come to this.”

This story was initially revealed July 3, 2022 5:00 AM.