A first-grade teacher in Tennessee recently came under fire for a dispute about curriculum. Eric Rivera alleged the administration at Kipp Antioch College Preparatory School in Nashville threatened his job after he refused a January lesson. Rivera claims the school wanted him to read a book to his class about a child with two fathers. The teacher believed the subject matter went against his Christian beliefs, so a co-teacher read the book. But Rivera now fears he could lose his job and has obtained legal representation.
Rivera told WZTV he asked the school for a religious accommodation. He said the book Stella Brings the Family by Miriam B. Schiffer conflicted with his Christian beliefs. The school reportedly allowed a co-teacher to read the book to students at first, but Rivera claims trouble soon began.
“I refused to read a book that had two fathers on the cover and one daughter,” he told the outlet. “I believe that that is not what God designed a marriage to be in a family to be.”
The day after allowing another teacher to read the book, Rivera claimed the administration issued him a final disciplinary warning, despite having no prior issues.
“The final warning said that I have to teach the lesson planned with fidelity and if I didn’t, I would be terminated,” he shared.
He ultimately moved from teaching first grade to kindergarten at the same school but still fears he could lose his job. Rivera obtained legal representation to send a demand letter to the school, advocating for his religious freedom.
“We’ve submitted a demand letter demanding that they accommodate Mr. Rivera’s religious practices and that they not discriminate,” lawyer Cliff Martin told WZTV.
Rivera wants curriculum transparency for all parents, which he thought was lacking in this situation.
“All public charter schools must follow the same Tennessee academic standards as traditional public schools, and while they do have flexibility selecting curriculum and materials, they must still be aligned with those same state standards. All schools are required to comply with the prohibited concepts law and must provide a form on their website for reporting violations,” the Tennessee Charter School Commission shared in a statement with WZTV.
“The Commission provides a form for submitting complaints related to the prohibited concepts law as well as any other violations of charter school law on our website. Teachers and staff at charter schools are employees of the school or charter operator and as such all personnel matters are handled by the school,” the commission added.
Thus far, Rivera remains employed. If he has never received any disciplinary action before, this doesn’t make much sense. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.
