Teachers Quit For Safety's Sake

By Kyle Meenan First Coast News

JACKSONVILLE, FL -- Justin Osier and his wife, Samantha Foster told First Coast News they quit their teaching jobs because they did not feel safe at Lee High School.

School officials confirm a gun was confiscated from the car of a student on Thursday, November 1, but for Osier and Foster, it was the last straw.

"Imagine learning about a gun being found at school, but nobody told you, and the school was never locked down. Imagine being the teacher that wants to speak out about your school's troubles but you can't because you're afraid of losing your job," said Osier in a prepared statement to the Duval County School Board Tuesday night.

"Imagine teaching a class and having a student threaten to throw a desk at you and when you call for security, no one ever comes," said Osier, referring to an incident he says happened in his classroom during the 2006-2007 academic year.

It was his first year as a teacher. The 2007-2008 academic year was the first for his wife, Samantha.

Lee High School Technology Teacher James Moser told the School Board acts of violence are a daily occurrence.

"Talking about Robert E Lee High School. Students versus students. Students versus teachers. I can't even count this year how many teachers have been assaulted by students. And some of these assaults were serious too!"

The School district says they have responded to the increased concerns.

"They've added extra security at Lee to monitor the parking lots in the area as well as additional security at the school," said Spokesperson Jill Johnson.

But the former Lee teachers say they were told on Friday by school administrators that there would be no additional security. Osier and Foster say that is when they decided to quit.

"They said there was no extra precautions that were going to be taken and that's when we talked and we decided to walk out. And we were hoping as walking out we would have our voices heard much louder," said Foster.

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