St. Lucie County school board members decided unanimously tonight to allow teacher Wendy Portillo to return to teaching more than a year after the May 2008 incident where she led kindergartners to vote a 5-year-old boy out of their class.
School officials say Portillo, who had been suspended and stripped of her tenure, is expected to teach science and reading to sixth graders at Allapattah K-8.
She was Alex Barton’s kindergarten teacher at Morningside Elementary when she led his classmates to vote on whether he should stay in class after he’d been disruptive. Doctors later diagnosed Alex with Asperger’s syndrome, a form of autism.

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Alex Barton with his mother, Melissa Barton

A mother whose autistic son was voted out of kindergarten in St. Lucie County last year is planning a press conference this afternoon to announce the filing of a federal lawsuit against the school district, several school officials and the local teacher’s union.

The complaint submitted in federal court alleges 5-year-old Alex Barton suffered irreparable damage when his teacher Wendy Portillo “orchestrated a ‘Survivor-style’ vote” asking the boy’s classmates whether or not he should be allowed to return to the class after he’d been repeatedly disruptive. The class voted him out 14-2.

Alex has since been diagnosed with a form of autism called Asperger’s syndrome.

Wendy Portillo answers questions during an administrative hearing.

The school board initially suspended Portillo one year and stripped her tenure, but in June they restored her tenue and said she will be allowed to return to the classroom in November.

St. Lucie County Schools spokeswoman Janice Karst this afternoon said the district does not comment on active livitgation.

Barton this morning declined to discuss the specifics of the lawsuit, reserving comment for the press conference scheduled for 3:30 p.m. at her attorney Paul Sopp’s office in West Palm Beach.

She did say that her son now attends a private school in Palm Beach County through a scholarship.

“He’s doing so well,” she said. “His teacher’s a sweetheart.”

Sopp said that that while Barton is seeking monetary damages from the suit, a victory in the case would help other students.

“What we’re trying to do is ensure that no one in the St. Lucie County school district is denied education based upon their disability,” Sopp said.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

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Though the summer brought tough budget cuts to Treasure Coast schools, a push into the digital age and environmental consciousness will be top priorities for the school year that begins today as thousands of students head back to classrooms.

St. Lucie County school officials closed Port St. Lucie Elementary and Southbend K-8 School, both in Port St. Lucie, at the end of the last school year and eliminated middle school and junior varsity sports districtwide.

Martin County also made cuts in sports and tightened individual school budgets for expenses like field trips and school supplies, but the fact that two schools this year became Title I schools also brought extra federal money to the district.

Martin Schools Superintendent Nancy Kline on Friday said this year will be the first for the Martin Virtual School, which will provide online instruction to students at all grade levels.

“It’s particularly helpful for students who will have to take extended absences from school, though virtual schools in general are becoming more and more popular,” Kline said.

Some students in St. Lucie County will get a taste of the high-tech at two new charter schools — The Nau Charter School and Renaissance Charter School, both in Port St. Lucie.
Renaissance Principal Eric Lewis said teachers at the new school spent the last few weeks reviewing curriculum and learning how to navigate around high-tech classrooms inside the $10 million building, which will include five laptop computers in each classroom.

“We used to think of the average classroom supplies in terms of papers and pencils, or glue and glitter, but now there are so many other tools at our disposal,” Lewis said.

And though the St. Lucie County school officials made significant cuts to the district’s after-school programs, some administrators still found ways for expansion.

Leaders at Village Green Elementary, for example, responded to news that their after-school environmental program would be cut with plans to integrate the program into their day-to-day curriculum. They unveiled plans for the school’s Global Environmental Studies Center magnet in June, a plan St. Lucie Schools Superintendent Michael Lannon said will actually save the district money.

“What they’ve been able to do is remarkable,” Lannon said.

DETAILS BY COUNTY
St. Lucie
Charters: Two new charter schools, The Nau Charter and Renaissance Charter, open today.
Sports: Budget cuts mean no junior varsity or middle school athletics unless the schools are able to pay for them.
Transportation: Transportation hotline is 772-340-4849. The phones will be manned from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays, with bilingual staff available. Transportation to magnet schools will be more limited this year, with fewer stops.
Supplies: Supply lists for individual schools, open house schedules and sports release forms are available online.
For more information, visit www.stlucie.k12.fl.us

Martin
Funding: Though school officials had to make cuts, the naming of two schools as Title I schools brought extra funding to the district.
Virtual School: Students for the first time will be able to receive instruction online through the Martin Virtual School. Eligible students had until August 12 to enroll.
Academics: Academically advanced middle school students in Martin this year will have more opportunities to take high school courses like Geometry, Integrated Science and Algebra. The 8th grade academic intervention program, which last school year helped 148 students in danger of failing pass through to the 9th grade, will be expanded to also target 6th and 7th graders.
Transportation: For transportation questions, call: 772-219-1287
For more information, visit www.sbmc.org.

More Treasure Coast students soon will be able to ditch classes at bricks-and-mortar schools.

Instead, they’ll head to class without leaving the house.

Starting with the new school year in August, all Florida school districts are required to offer virtual schools because of a 2008 law created to give parents more choice over how their children are educated. (more…)

PORT ST. LUCIE — Shirley Littlefield’s eyes filled with tears as she picked up her daughter, third-grader Elizabeth, from what was truly her last day of school at Port St. Lucie Elementary.

“It’s heartbreaking,” Littlefield said. “We’re getting split up, and it hurts.”

The 34-year-old building closed its doors to students, teachers and staff on Wednesday as part of a plan to deal with St. Lucie County School District budget constraints.

Closing the school, as well as Southbend K-8 and Anglewood Center, which taught pregnant teens, is expected to save $30 million next year. (more…)

PORT ST. LUCIE — One year ago, a 6-year-old autistic boy was brought to the front of his classroom. He left moments later feeling like an outcast.

For many, he became a symbol of how children with autism are mistreated and misunderstood.

Some experts say the case of Alex Barton, who was voted out of his kindergarten classroom 14-to-2, brought about change and awareness of how autistic children are educated. Others say there still is a long way to go. (more…)

STUART — A student was charged with battery last week after he was accused of attacking his teacher when she woke him up, according to an affidavit released Wednesday.

The incident occurred the morning of May 12, when the 14-year-old jumped up and began flailing his arms as the teacher roused him to leave the class at Challenger School, the affidavit says. He then kicked her in the left knee and punched her right forearm.

The boy was charged with battery on a school employee and suspended from school, according to the affidavit.

By staff report, TCPalm.com

PORT ST. LUCIE — Cheers, tears and roses were on display before a standing-room-only crowd in the auditorium of Port St. Lucie Elementary Monday night.

The gathering was to say goodbye to the 34-year-old school that is being closed in June as part of the school district’s plan to save $30 million next year.

“We have always been a family,” said Deb Mock, a reading coach who has taught at the school 31 years. “We’ve been there for each other through all the challenges we’ve had — hurricanes, flooding, the deaths of faculty members. We always strived to do the best for our students,” she added.
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PORT ST. LUCIE — The mother of the 5-year-old kindergarten student voted out of class last year told police she was threatened by another mother at the same school.

Melissa Barton said she went to the school Friday for a ceremony honoring her oldest son, according to a Port St. Lucie police report. Another woman approached her in the school cafeteria allegedly threatening to fight her in the parking lot.

Barton’s son, Alex, was ousted from his kindergarten class in a 14-to-2 vote led by his teacher Wendy Portillo. Portillo in November was suspended for one year and her tenure was taken away.

The other mother denied the allegations, the police report said. She told police she approached Barton and said, “I’m going to be real discreet about this. I just want you to know that I love my school and what you did was not fair to our school,” the police report said.

The school resource officer said she escorted Barton to the parking lot because of safety concerns and told her she would send a patrol car to monitor her home.

No arrests were made and the case was closed.

By staff report, TCPalm.com

PORT ST. LUCIE — Treasure Coast is seeking a new boys basketball coach.

Titans coach Rob Recknagel resigned for personal reasons, but will remain at the school as a science teacher. In two seasons, Recknagel guided Treasure Coast to two regional appearances and a 32-22 record.

“It was a tough decision for me to make, and I will miss it, but basically I wanted to spend more time with my kids,” said Recknagel, who has two young children, 3-year-old Brady and 4-year-old Ella. “I knew eventually I would get to a point where I would want to spend more time with my kids than someone else’s kids.

“It was a good experience. We were successful, and it’s tough to leave the returning seniors and the kids in the program.”

Recknagel submitted a letter of resignation about a month ago, but athletic director Dan Comeau said he encouraged the coach to “let the dust settle and keep thinking about it.” Recknagel recently informed Comeau of his final decision and the job opening was posted last week through the St. Lucie County School District’s Paperless Applicant Tracking system online. (more…)