Some parents in Saugerties are outraged after seeing a homework assignment assigned in a ninth-grade English class.

"You’ve got to be kidding me. I was shocked, but not surprised," said Justine Tomkiell, a parent whose children attend the school district.

The assignment was practice for the Regents exam. In it, students were asked to respond to a prompt saying, "George Floyd did not die because Chauvin's knee was on his neck. He died from a heart attack and drug overdose. However, because Chauvin used excessive force and failed to render aid, he was convicted on all three counts by a jury of his peers."

The prompt then goes on to question a juror in the Chauvin trial.

What You Need To Know

  • Saugerties parents are upset about a recent English class homework assignment that students recently took home

  • Some parents say the assignment, which references George Floyd and the Derek Chauvin trial, is biased

  • Saugerties Central School District Superintendent Kirk Reinhardt says the administration is investigating

“We met with the staff member. We were also in direct contact with the family," said Kirk Reinhardt, superintendent of Saugerties Central School District. "The assignment was revised and then it was removed.”

Reinhardt says the district is looking into the assignment.

“We’re working with our community to make sure that we can move forward and make sure that an incident like this doesn’t happen, where any of our students are made to feel uncomfortable," Reinhardt said.

A message from Reinhardt on the school district website indicates that the teacher "has been reassigned pending the outcome" of the district's investigation.

Parents named the teacher as Hope Antonelli, a ninth-grade teacher at Saugerties High School. Parents who Spectrum News spoke with say Antonelli has been a point of concern in the past, with another parent, Daisy Bolle, alleging Antonelli was homophobic toward another student in the past.

"What teacher gets involved in their kids’ personal lives to begin with?” Bolle said.

Tomkiell says Antonelli should be fired, but at the very least, undergo anti-racism training.

 

“At best, reprimand. Immediate training. You can’t wait to train someone who’s already displayed racist tendencies," Tomkiell said.

Reinhardt says he’s committed to making sure no student feels uncomfortable or unsafe in the district. And that the school’s diversity committee will play a role in ensuring this.

“This is an incident. This is not reflective of Saugerties. Saugerties is a wonderful community, very caring," Reinhardt said. "They’ve been very welcoming with me. This is an incident that we’re not happy with, our student was made to feel uncomfortable. We want our community to know we’re here for them.”