New Haven Independent

“My feeling was that the children in her classroom were ill-prepared to succeed in the future,” Halligan said as she described the events that led her to seek termination of the tenured Mary T. Murphy elementary school teacher.

In a federal lawsuit, Farina portrays just as devastating a portrait of her immediate superiors. She outlines a concerted effort to force her to resign, singled out because of her disabilities, her age and her long tenure. She describes her life in school as a living hell, a place where she was consistently monitored, including how long she spent in the ladies room and even being told when “it was appropriate for her to go the ladies room,” the 36-page lawsuit says. Click here to read it.

It is unusual to terminate a tenured teacher, especially one who has served in the system for 27 years without incident until a few years ago, and who was seriously ill with thyroid cancer, back surgeries and insomnia. The termination effort began in April 2008, after supervisors learned of the lawsuit.

Farina (pictured) came into the Branford school system in 1981 when she was about 22 years old. At the time her father, Joe Farina, now 76, was an athletics administrator, having served as football coach for 10 years and athletic director for ten years. He and his wife attended the nearly four-hour long hearing at the Community House on Church St. Wednesday

From the time she began teaching until the 2006 school year, Farina, now 49, had been a kindergarten teacher. She had satisfactory evaluations in this role. But she wanted a change, her father told the Eagle, something more challenging, so she asked to teach the fourth grade. She did so for two academic years, a period that coincided with her medical problems. That is when she ran into trouble.

Her principal, Anthony Buono, later shifted her to second grade. Why she did not return to kindergarten teaching is unclear.

None of this would have been made public had Farina not sought an open hearing. One immediate result of the hearing is that Farina and her legal team now have a preview of the evidence gathered against her, material important to their federal case. They are seeking punitive damages, attorneys’ fees and other compensation. She was put on paid leave this year.

Farina told the Eagle that she sought a public hearing because she wanted the Board of Education to learn what had happened to her. She chose this forum rather than an outside panel of arbitrators. In so doing, she is permitting a three-person Board of Education panel, led by board Chairman Frank Carrano, to evaluate a case brought by the School’s Superintendent. The panel will recommend that she be terminated or not be terminated to the full board. The two other board members are Michael Krause and David Squires. William Connon, the board of ed’s outside counsel, is serving as overseer of the hearing.

Over her troubled last two years she was placed in a Teachers Improvement Plan (TIP). When a series of these plans failed to work, she was placed in an Intensive Teachers Improve Plan (ITIP). According to those familiar with ITIP intervention, the pressure is intense. All aspects of the teacher’s life are monitored, including daily lesson plans, classroom observance, outside tutoring and other interventions. All this came during her illnesses. Farina also had serious lateness issues. At one point Halligan said she gave her an additional five minutes to get to school in the morning.

School officials were troubled when she was seriously late for a fourth-grade field trip. In addition to the ITIPS, Halligan placed her on probation for the 2007-08 school year.

After she learned she would be terminated, her lawyer David N. Axelrod of Woodbridge and Mica Notz (pictured), a senior paralegal at the firm, filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court against her supervisors, Murphy Principal Anthony Buono and then Assistant Principal Monica Biggs, who has since left. Axelrod asserted a series of federal violations, including age, disability and employment discrimination along with harassment. The lawsuit is pending.

Halligan said that since Farina asserted bias on the part of Buono and Biggs she assigned one of her top administrators to conduct a review. The result, identified as exhibit 99, was a 740-page document that was admitted into the record. Axelrod and Notz received the document last week.

Notz, who lives in Branford, has taken the lead in the case with Axelrod at her side. She does not have a law degree, but Axelrod has given her wide latitude in overseeing the case.

Tempers flared when she put forth objections in a non-neutral way. At one point, when cross-examining Dr. Halligan, she asked if there had been complaints against the superintendent. “There have been no complaints against me — in my entire history,” Dr.Halligan stated. .

Notz piped up: “I can guarantee it.” At that point Michael Rose, the Board of Education’s attorney, was on his feet, furious. He looked at Axelrod and asked who the lead counsel was in this case. “It is unethical to get any evidence into the record in this way.” He called Notz’s characterization of Dr. Halligan argumentative and a form of “character assassination.”

Overall, school administrators imposed on Farina four separate TIPS over a two-year period in addition to probation. Why school administrators should extend TIPS multiple times if children are in jeopardy is a question not yet answered. But this issue is believed to be part of a grievance filed by the teacher’s union against the Board of Education in this case. It will be heard in January. It is the only union grievance in the case so far.

Notz observed through her questions that Murphy School fourth-graders had received the lowest Connecticut Mastery Test scores among the town’s three elementary schools. Dr.Halligan confirmed that.

“Yet only one fourth-grade teacher at Murphy was placed on a TIP,” Notz asked Dr. Halligan.

“Yes.”

“Was one of the reasons the scores on the test? ”

“Yes.”

“And this did not happen to any other teacher at Murphy?” Notz asked.

“No,” replied Dr.Halligan.

There were five fourth-grades classes at the time.

One theme raised but not yet fully explored was whether senior school officials sought voluntary resignations of older teachers because their budget had been cut back. Notz asked Dr. Halligan if she asked for voluntarily resignations in 2007-08. “No,” she replied. The federal lawsuit claims union officials were unsympathetic and told her to resign.

Initially Notz said she was not prepared to cross-examine Dr. Halligan. She had not expected Attorney Rose to finish questioning Halligan so early in the day, she said. He observed she should have been prepared. Although she did go forward with her cross-examination of Dr. Halligan she sought several breaks and ended 15 minutes early.

The hearing resumes on Sept. 18 at 9 a.m. at the Community House. Buono, the principal at Mary Murphy, was on hand today and is expected to testify on that day.

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