As I mentioned yesterday, earlier this week one of Canning's former students, Rebecca Selwick, committed suicide after over a year of bullying both at school and online from as many as 15 girls at Crystal Lake. Late yesterday, the Polk County sheriff confirmed that she was indeed bullied into taking her own life. According to Rebecca's mom, the bullying kept up even when she complained to school administrators, forcing her to transfer Rebecca to another school. Almost as outrageous are reports that bullying is a pretty serious problem at that school. Which means that the principal of that school, Chris Canning, better have a very good explanation for what's going on there if he wants to keep his job.
I'm literally shaking with anger as I type this. I don't think I've been this angry about apparent misfeasance on the part of an educator since finding out Graham Spanier failed to see to it that Jerry Sandusky was reported for molesting that boy in the shower. The parallels are pretty stark. Just as Spanier's failure to report Sandusky's actions (and his apparent complicity in covering them up) allowed a monster to continue preying on children for another decade, Canning's apparent failure to drop the hammer on the in-school bullying almost certainly allowed things to escalate to the point that Rebecca finally couldn't take any more. Granted, he had no jurisdiction over what they did away from school. But it's a pretty safe bet that a few days in ISS for their in-school misbehavior would have been enough of a reality check to make them think twice about tormenting Rebecca away from school as well.
On his profile at Crystal Lake's Web site, Canning claims that he encourages his students to "be all they can be every day." And yet, if the reports are true, he doesn't seem to be doing anything about students' self-esteem being knocked down several notches every day.
Canning's bosses at the Polk County School Board say they're investigating this affair. But any investigation would be a joke unless Canning isn't made to give a full accounting for what is happening regarding bullying at Crystal Lake. And if it is true that he didn't handle this appropriately, then the only proper remedy is for him to be fired.
8:12 AM PT: Started a petition to the Polk County School Board demanding that Canning give a full accounting for this. Sign here.