Phila. teacher accused of abuse tells judge: 'I didn't do it'
Marianne Kennedy and a parade of witnesses spent six hours before an administrative law judge Tuesday, telling officials every way they knew how that she is not a child abuser.
Marianne Kennedy and a parade of witnesses spent six hours before an administrative law judge Tuesday, telling officials every way they knew how that she is not a child abuser.
Kennedy, 43, a veteran teacher at Willard Elementary in Kensington, was removed from the school in September after trying to calm a troubled first grader after an outburst.
Kennedy, principal Ron Reilly, and other witnesses told the judge that Kennedy's actions were professional and appropriate, Kennedy and her attorney said after the hearing, which was not open to the public. They stressed her long history of supporting students and the Willard community.
The boy's guardian says her actions were abusive.
The judge, hearing the case for the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services, now has 45 days to issue a ruling.
In the meantime, Kennedy will head back to the "rubber room" - an office at the Philadelphia School District's headquarters where teachers accused of misconduct wait while their cases are investigated. If the child-abuse indication stands, she could be fired.
"Reckless disregard for his welfare" were the words the city's lawyer used, Kennedy's lawyer Richard Migliore said. Philadelphia DHS said, in Kennedy's initial interview and Tuesday, that Willard failed the boy.
One of the tougher parts of the day, Kennedy said, was looking at photos taken on June 17, the day after the incident. The photos showed bruises left on the boy, whose drug-addicted mother had lost custody of him and a sibling.
"They said I did that," Kennedy said of the marks.
Kennedy and the Willard staff say the bruises stem from a June 16 incident when another student choked the boy.
Kennedy was not present when the boy was choked, but earlier in the day, she put her hands underneath him to keep him from hurting himself as he lay on the floor banging his head. The city says she sat on the boy.
Kennedy veers from optimism to despair. The married mother of three thinks of supporting her family, but she also can't imagine losing the only job she ever wanted.
"My future is in the hands of someone else, who never worked in the School District, who doesn't know the child, who doesn't know my history at the school," she said.
But ultimately, she's hopeful, Kennedy said. She was cheered by the support of a handful of friends and admirers who waited outside the hearing room Tuesday, just to show their faith in her, and by the messages pouring in from the Willard staff.
"I have 70 people standing up for me," Kennedy said, "saying this never happened."
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