Parents defended a Colorado teacher who drew cartoon penises on her students’ papers and yearbooks, apparently as a prank.
Rebecca Roetto, an employee of Fairview High School since 2003, works as a physical education instructor: she teaches wellness in action, yoga, and bowling, in addition to directing Adelante. program, which provides support to first-generation Hispanic students.
Students, parents and fellow teachers attended a board meeting in Boulder Tuesday night to criticize the veteran teacher’s possible firing over allegations of “sexual harassment.” Denver Post reported.
‘Was what happened a mistake? Yes,’ Randi Hart, a substitute teacher who previously worked alongside Roetto, told The Denver Post.
‘Should a 20-year career go to waste because of that? No.’
Colorado high school teacher Rebecca Roetto (right) was reported last May for drawing cartoon penises on her students’ papers and yearbooks.
Last May, a school security guard reported Roetto after a penis drawn on a student’s form caught his attention.
The report led to an investigation that found she engaged in “misconduct” and demonstrated “inappropriate behavior with and toward students that constitutes sexual harassment in violation of multiple board policies.”
Students spoke up to share details about the day of the incident, noting that they came across hundreds of penises drawn on the building in what may have been a senior prank.
They claimed they suggested Roetto draw penises on her “exit” forms (documents seniors must have to graduate) instead of the appropriate seal which she did not have at the time.
She agreed and proceeded to draw a penis on 10 students’ forms.
Following the investigation, Rob Anderson, the Boulder Valley superintendent, recommended that Roetto be fired from the district.
But letters and testimonies from parents and former students showed that they saw the veteran teacher from a very different perspective.
Rob Anderson, the Boulder Valley superintendent, recommended that Roetto be fired from the district following the investigation of the incident.
“Miss Roetto has spent her career advocating for those of us who do not have a voice,” Fairview alumna Jennifer Contreras Robles told The Denver Post.
Robles, who is now a sophomore at the University of Colorado, said Roetto was her support when she was discriminated against by another teacher. He even helped her apply to college.
“There are real problems in Fairview and Ms. Roetto is not one of them,” he added. “She is the kindest, most understanding teacher I have ever had.”
Speakers at the board meeting questioned why a single mistake would lead the district to fire her.
Some even questioned whether the real reason for his dismissal was his advocacy for a better school culture, noting that he supported several students who were victims of sexual assault.
“I can’t help but wonder if what we are witnessing today is retaliation for using your voice to call attention to these failures in our schools,” said Katherine Francis, another speaker.
The Boulder Valley School District settled a federal sexual assault and harassment lawsuit brought by two former Fairview High School students for $1.26 million in 2022. Denver Post reported.
Students and parents attended a board meeting in Boulder Tuesday night to criticize the veteran teacher’s possible firing over allegations of “sexual harassment.”
In 2019, the school’s star quarterback was arrested on sexual assault charges but was later acquitted of the most serious charges.
Shortly after, a former lacrosse player was found guilty of sexually harassing three young women while he was a student, leading to an internal investigation and the removal of the school’s principal.
Another former football player was also convicted of attempted sexual assault after he allegedly pinned a girl to a locker at school and groped her.
Students protested the tolerance of inappropriate behavior, specifically by male athletes, and walked out of school.
Kari Costello, a former Fairview teacher, said at the board meeting that there was a pattern of teachers being “disproportionately harassed, berated or punished” and called for an investigation into gender discrimination within the district.
“Teachers live in fear,” he said.
The dismissal recommendation was not discussed by the school board but rather an informational matter.
Roetto has been on paid leave since Aug. 7 and did not speak at Tuesday’s board meeting.
