Illinois teacher commits suicide citing working conditions [View all]
Mary Thorson, a 32-year-old physical education teacher at Cottage Grove Upper Grade Center in Ford Heights, Illinois, took her own life on November 24, 2011. The note she left at the scene of her death was devoted almost entirely to the conditions in the Ford Heights school district, closing with, “We must speak up about what’s going on! This life has been unbelievable.”
A veteran of the US Army Reserve, Thorson was a popular teacher at the school where she had worked since 2008, having taught in Chicago and suburban Bellwood before taking the position at Cottage Grove Upper Grade in the Chicago suburb of Ford Heights. Her colleagues noted her dedication to the students at the school, including her habit of providing them with warm clothing and school supplies.
Thorson had been suspended one week before her death due to an allegation that she had cursed at a student. Her family told the Chicago Tribune that she was worried about having become a target of the school administration and about being fired. Her personnel records were found neatly laid out on her bed after her death.
More than 98 percent of students in the Ford Heights school district live below the poverty line. In her final statement, Thorson wrote of extreme hardships faced by the students, the school administration’s disregard for teachers, and the lack of resources available in the district.
<skip>
Mary Thorson’s parents have made a special effort to communicate their daughter’s intentions. Her mother said that the young teacher’s suicide was directly related to the pressures at Cottage Grove Upper Grade Center, emphasizing that Mary had no prior mental health issues and was never in a combat situation in the Army Reserve. Thorson’s father said, “Is the school responsible? Yes, the school is responsible.”
more . . . http://www.wsws.org/articles/2012/jan2012/suic-j09.shtml
= new reply since forum marked as read