Branford Board of Education Fires Denise Farina

by Marcia Chambers | November 19, 2009 7:36 AM | | Comments (11)

BOEFARINADSC01399%281%29.JPGIt took the Branford Board of Education (pictured) less than five minutes last night to unanimously agree to fire Denise Farina, a tenured teacher at the Mary T. Murphy elementary school for the last 28 years.

The full nine-member board acted after its outside attorney, William Connon, explained the town’s proceedings involving the Farina case included nine days of hearings, featuring 25 sworn witnesses and nearly 300 exhibits. Connon, who served as the hearings’ overseer, said the record was voluminous.

Board of Education Chairman Frank Carrano told the board that there were 84 findings of fact, which, he said, “we believe to be true.”

The findings were approved by a three-member Board of Education committee comprised of Carrano, David Squires and Michael Krause earlier this month.

The full board’s ruling was expected. It came without any questions from the other board members. Carrano explained that the committee reviewed the findings and corroborated the evidence. In the end, the full board agreed that Farina, 50, was incompetent and either “unwilling or unable” to improve her professional practices.

The Farina hearing was unique because it was open to the public. Farina wanted that. She said she wanted the board to know how her immediate supervisors had treated her.She could have chosen an independent arbitration panel, the usual route in these cases.

Instead she chose a Board of Education panel even though she had also filed a costly federal lawsuit against Anthony Buono, the Murphy school’s principal and a former assistant principal.

The federal lawsuit claims the Board of Education discriminated against her in a variety of ways, including violating employment and disabilities statutes. It became clear from the first hearing that Farina’s legal team, primarily her advocate Mica Notz, was posing questions relevant to her federal case. Eventually issues concerning disability were barred. She is seeking punitive damages, attorneys’ fees and other compensation in her federal lawsuit.

So at the same time she was seeking reinstatement from the Board of Education she was also suing them in federal court. She has 30 days to appeal the Board of Education’s decision in state Superior Court.She has indicated she will do so. This means the Board of Education will have to defend two lawsuits.

After Carrano outlined the conclusions and Connon added that in agreeing to terminate, the board also adopted the findings of fact, a motion was made to terminate Farina.

“All in favor say aye.” The ayes responded. There were no abstentions. The motion carried.

Connon, a named partner in Hartford law firm of Sullivan Schoen Campane & Connon, LLC, waited from 7:30 p.m. to nearly 9 p.m. while the Board of Education took up other matters, including a lengthy PowerPoint presentation on the skills of kindergarten children and a long report from the Schools Superintendent Kathleen Halligan. Despite the billable hours mounting up, no motion was made to move the Farina matter up.

None of Farina’s family, friends or legal team attended the meeting. Her parents, Rosemarie and Joseph Farina, this week begged the Board of Education to reinstate their daughter.

“To strip her of her self-esteem and to deprive her of the opportunity to pursue her livelihood is unconscionable, especially during these economic hardships,” her parents wrote in a letter to the Sound newspaper. Her father was the school system’s former athletic director and football coach. Farina began her teaching career in 1981 at the Murphy school when she was 22.

With this formal termination by the board, Farina, who has been on paid leave, now loses her salary.

Superintendent Halligan testified that she recommended Farina be fired. Farina has been described as disorganized and persistently late. Overall, Dr. Halligan said, the children in her class were not receiving an adequate education. Peter Anaclerio, the former president of the Branford Education Association, the teachers union, testified that he had urged Farina to resign.

Farina testified that she was hampered in recent years by serious illnesses, including thyroid cancer, back surgeries and insomnia; and school authorities did nothing to help her. She said she had satisfactory evaluations from year to year until she became ill. It is still not clear why she did not take a medical leave or why the case did not settle.

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Comments

Posted by: John S. Montanaro | November 19, 2009 11:20 AM

Can I conclude from the article that the cause of termination of Farina was that she was a 'bad' teacher? Have their been other cases of tenured teachers being fired because of poor performance?

Posted by: MICHELE | November 19, 2009 12:17 PM

i think it's pretty sad that it only took less than 5 minutes to make a decision. obviously you can see how one sided and bogus this procedure was. they already had their minds made up since day one!! maybe Buono and Halligan need to go!
it's known that many people in town don't care for them but would never stand up to them like Miss Farina did for herself. she did absolutely nothing wrong!! why is it that other teachers in this town have actually done things wrong and are still teaching?!

Posted by: Mary | November 19, 2009 1:52 PM

"It is still not clear why she did not take a medical leave" - this is the part that has puzzled me as I have read these accounts .


"Despite the billable hours mounting up, no motion was made to move the Farina matter up" - do we know for sure that the Board if being billed by the hour instead of having counsel on retainer ?

Michele - they had "nine days of hearings, featuring 25 sworn witnesses and nearly 300 exhibits" and several weeks to mull this over. The fact that it took them five minutes to make a decision is a red herring.

Sad that she has to have her parents plead her case for her in public.

Posted by: Laura | November 19, 2009 2:16 PM

My son had Miss Farina as a kindergarten teacher and she was not incompetent in ANY way! I cannot believe this has happened to her. Mr. Buono had it out for her from the beginning and I think it upset the "masses" when Miss Farina decided to sue in Federal court and that's why they had her fired. Miss Farina is a wonderful person and my son adored her. We are no longer living in Branford so we do not have to endure the Branford school system any longer, but it saddens me to see the BOE oust a teacher due to medical reasons beyond her control. I have been following this story from day 1 and I support Miss Farina 100%. The BOE did LITTLE to help her and she did take a medical leave of absence, however, the BOE also tried to implement an improvement course for her at the same time so obviously the BOE and Mr. Buono had their minds made up already.

Posted by: Lifer | November 19, 2009 9:48 PM

How many 50 year olds have their parents writing a letter like this on their behalf:
“To strip her of her self-esteem and to deprive her of the opportunity to pursue her livelihood is unconscionable...."

Posted by: JohnH | November 19, 2009 9:56 PM

Branford has created a Cottage Industry for lawyers with all the litigation it invites. Welcome to Tabor-Farina Town

Posted by: Allen | November 20, 2009 1:37 AM

I have been a Branford resident for 12 yrs. and felt that the school system was one of the better systems on the shoreline. When I ever learned and followed this kangooroo BOE court it almost felt as if I were reliving white/ole boy southern justice at it's best. As A resident/tax payer I would be shocked to see the money they spent on this teacher trying to fire her. I have to warn the town of Branford that there is a calm before the storm and now you have the Federal Courts to deal with within the next several months. Be careful for what you might wish for. Lastly, can the town settle her federal law suit when it comes back from deliberations? Very scary Mr. DaRos. Better get ready to write the check!!!!! Good Luck.

Posted by: Denise Farina | November 20, 2009 10:48 PM

To "Lifer" [and "Mary"]: To clarify yet another ignorant mind, I did NOT know my parents were writing that letter on my behalf. I did NOT have to have them plead my case for me. Please let's not stoop so low as to bash my elderly parents now who are heartbroken over my situation and were obviously just speaking as they felt. Are you parents? They say that parents feel the hurt of a child no matter what age of the child. Just as ignorance obviously has no age either.

Posted by: Mary | November 24, 2009 5:24 AM

Class act, Denise - not.

Posted by: Strong Supporter | November 25, 2009 1:11 AM

To "Mary": I do not understand your comment? Do you even know Denise? Have you ever met her, or are you one of the ignorant townspeople who are going solely on what they are reading in the paper? I have had the pleasure of working with her a few years ago, and just to let you know she has MORE class than most people you will ever meet, both on the inside as well on the outside. It is very sad how society is so judgmental when they don't even know all of the facts, or the people involved.

Posted by: Mary | November 26, 2009 10:18 AM

@ "Strong Supporter" - my comment was in direct response to Ms. Farina's replies to my comments right here. She chose, and reportedly now regrets, to have her case tried in the court of public opinion. Lashing out at our opinions and calling us "ignorant" demonstrated a lack of class, IMHO.

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