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Sarasota teacher should be fired for altercation with student, superintendent says

A law firm review is recommending other school administrators also be investigated for not doing enough about the teacher's 'aggressive conduct.'

SARASOTA, Fla. — Sarasota County Public Schools Superintendent Todd Bowden is recommending the firing of a teacher involved in a physical altercation with a student in 2018.

John Russo, a social studies teacher and athletic director at Brookside Middle School, has been on administrative leave since the incident happened on campus in February 2018. 

According to our partners at WWSB, a 14-year-old cursed and threatened him at a track meet, prompting Russo to grab the child's arm and leading to a physical altercation.

Police launched a criminal investigation, but prosecutors dismissed the case after Russo took a six-hour nonviolent crisis intervention training course and did 24 hours of community service, according to WWSB

But, the television station reported the State Attorney's Office published a memo that still concluded his physical contact with the teen was “unnecessary and inappropriate.” As a result, school officials continued their own investigation.

On Monday, a spokesperson for Sarasota County Schools announced administrators had finished reviewing an outside law firm's investigation of "multiple incidents of inappropriate behavior toward students," and the superintendent would be recommending Russo's termination. The recommendation will be sent to the school board for review during the May 12 board meeting.

The investigation, which was conducted by a lawyer at Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick, recommends Russo be fired for violating state law and a collective bargaining agreement. It also says the violations should be reported to the Florida Department of Education, and principals should also be investigated for "not adequately" addressing Russo's "aggressive conduct." The final report also recommends requiring all teachers and administrators undergo training regarding the use of force.

“I believe the dismissal of John Russo is the right decision for the school district,” Superintendent Bowden wrote in a statement. “He failed to live up to the standards of the teaching profession and failed to fulfill the expectations of our parents, who believe their children should be safe when they are at school and be inspired by teachers to do their best..."

Russo has been employed by the school district since 1996. A substitute teacher took over his teaching duties following the 2018 incident. That substitute instructor will remain in the classroom through the end of the year, and a permanent teacher will be hired for next year.

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