At Wednesday's protest.
Teachers, parents, and other staffers at the LULAC Head Start daycare center on James Street rallied outside of the school building Wednesday in protest of the recent firing of one of their colleagues.
That protest took place outside of the LULAC Head Start Mull River Center at 375 James St. between 7:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m.
Sixteen of the 21 educators who work at the daycare and family resource center rallied outside of the James Street school building to protest the recent firing of the center’s education/disability coordinator, whose first name is Adeli.
Teachers who participated in the protest described their public action as a response to the abrupt and unexplained firing of a much-loved supervisor.
Some of those staffers described Adeli, whom the Independent could not reach for comment for this article, as someone who “kept the building alive,” “was always there for us,” and as “the backbone for the building.”
Wednesday’s protest meant that the school, which serves infants and toddlers aged eight weeks to five years old from mostly low-income families, was closed for the day.
“I want to walk back into that building with her,” said LULAC education coach Elisa Acety about why she joined Wednesday’s protest in support of her now-former colleague.
“This is the only thing we can do to be heard,” added Liss Rivera. “We want support.”
Reached by email after Wednesday’s protest, LULAC Executive Director Mikyle Byrd-Vaughn provided the Independent with the following comment: “Connecticut law does not permit employers to comment on employment matters. Moreover, LULAC’s [mission] has always been, and continues to be, providing high quality, low or no [cost] childcare services to the wonderful community that we serve. While we respect our employees’ feelings, it is unfortunate that, in this time of limited childcare services, this employment matter has negatively impacted the children and families that we serve. We look forward to opening the center tomorrow and providing a needed service to many families who trust us as their partners in their child’s development.”
The Wednesday gathering included teachers, front desk workers, volunteers, parents, and teaching assistants. It also took place against the backdrop of a nationwide crisis in childcare staffing and costs.
At around 11 a.m., around a dozen teachers stood outside of the school and chanted:
“What do we want?” they asked. To have their colleague back! They replied.
“We want justice!” they said.
The teachers said that they found out about their colleague being fired at around 3 p.m. Tuesday. They said that same colleague had been out of the office all last week due to an investigation.
Many of those who spoke with the Independent on Wednesday said they grew close with the now-fired colleague because she was their direct supervisor who oversaw them on the job, and subsequently became a friend and mentor.
Acety said she began as an assistant teacher and was mentored by the now-fired colleague, who helped her to move up to a head teacher, and then a coach.
Christine James also was motivated by Adeli to further her education to become a better teacher. James started with LULAC in 2015 as a teacher’s assistant and is now an infant and toddler teacher.
“She always told me I could lead and was big on pushing me to expand my education,” she said. “She had a lot of faith in my” ability to grow as a teacher.
James said when she received the email from administration notifying the team of her colleague’s departure, she couldn’t help but cry. “When I opened it, I was like: ‘No!’” she recalled. “Everything around me just changed and I just freaked out and started crying.”
Other teachers like Liss Rivera, Nidia Rivas, Cruz Bedoya, Jennifer Rivas, and Ada Herdia said their colleague helped daily to cover classes when teachers needed breaks and supported them personally.
While shaking maracas and holding up signs toward the passing cars, teachers said they plan to protest again tomorrow with the goal of getting an explanation from the center’s leaders.
Several cars beeped in acknowledgement of the protest while passing along James Street.
Rivas said she met Adeli in 2004 when she was a parent of a child getting LULAC services. She has since gone on to become a head teacher after many years of volunteering and being a teacher assistant at the center.
She recently made the decision with motivation from Adeli to enroll in college to get a bachelor’s degree in child studies.
“We do think about the kids and families, but who is thinking about us?” Jennifer Rivas, who is a teacher’s assistant, asked. “We just lost someone who supported and pushed us everyday.”
Ileana Matos said she met Adeli when she first migrated to New Haven from Puerto Rico after a hurricane in 2018.
Adeli helped Matos to move up from teacher’s assistant to a teacher over the past five years, she said.
“She was my first support,” Matos said. “She fought for my rights.”
As a former parent of the lulac location where Adeli managed she was short and rude. When i picked my kids up she rush the teachers or came out while the teachers talked and interrupted. When a issue occurred with one of my children she had a attitude towards me and told me my child doesnt have to be there because there is a waiting list. Her people skills lacked even 3 years ago. This was before Covid times. If she was fired there had to be a reason that was swept under the rug like 3 years ago. Sorry that you lost a colleuge but seems like she hasnt changed in all these years.