A “microaggression” was big enough to cost one superintendent candidate his dream job, he says.
Vito Perrone said he’s “shocked” and “devastated” after the Easthampton School Committee pulled back its offer for him to lead the district because he used the term “ladies” in an email to the committee chair.
Perrone said he was all excited to become the superintendent of Easthampton Public Schools, but the rug was pulled out from under him after his email to School Committee Chairperson Cynthia Kwiecinski and the School Committee assistant.
Perrone, the interim superintendent of West Springfield Public Schools, had addressed the pair as “ladies” in the email that was going over three negotiation points after the School Committee had offered him the superintendent job.
Following that email, Perrone was invited to an executive session held over Zoom. After the School Committee met alone for about 45 minutes, Kwiecinski informed Perrone that the committee had voted to rescind the superintendent offer.
“I was shocked,” Perrone, 58, said on Monday. “I basically said, ‘What?’”
He said he was told in the private meeting, “‘Because the email you sent was addressed to ladies and that was a microaggression, and it was disrespectful and unacceptable… As an educational leader, you should know that was a microaggression. You can’t lead us in the direction we want to go in this district.’ ”
This was first reported by the Daily Hampshire Gazette, and the story has since been picked up by national publications.
Growing up in the 1960s and 70s, Perrone said the terms “ladies” and “gentlemen” were respectful, and it’s why he used “ladies” in the email.
During the private meeting, Perrone said he responded, “‘If I offended you, I apologize. It wasn’t my intent.’”
He was then asked to leave the executive session.
“I was devastated,” Perrone told the Herald. “I was very excited about the prospect of coming back to Easthampton where I was a principal before, and to have it taken away like that is pretty devastating.”
He said he talked with a lawyer from the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents, who told him there was no legal recourse because he hadn’t signed anything.
The Herald on Monday reached out to Easthampton Mayor Nicole LaChapelle, who is on the School Committee, for a comment about rescinding the superintendent offer.
“The Mayor is awaiting legal clarification around Executive Session privilege before commenting and the City cannot comment on personnel matters,” responded Lindsi Mailler, executive assistant in the Mayor’s Office.
The Herald also reached out to the School Committee chairperson, Kwiecinski. She did not immediately respond to comment.
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Our new improved nation hires and fires people on the color of there skin, it is called equity and CRT training! It is the way to destroy individual merit! That is the way forward in our Marxist Utopia! And anyone that thinks differently will be shouted down and censored for hate speech! The is what is now taught in the most prestigious universities in America!
You see, that was his big mistake calling these people ladies, which they obviously are not. These type of people wish to be called IT. They are not human beings, they are IT’S.
Personally I would never associate with IT’s. I wouldn’t trust IT any farther than I could throw IT.
Sad what the left has done to society in America.
I am beyond disgusted with the left and their preposterous ways.
Sounds like he dodged a bullet. I couldn’t see him working for this disgusting org..
I can understand him using the wrong wording of “ladies” when it should have been “benches”. In review I misspell a word but I nevercorrect what I wrote or misspelled.
Look at it this way, even if you had been hired you would not have been happy working there. You were far too good for them, and they knew it, so you never had a chance. Consider yourself lucky you got away from these b—s.
Better he had addressed them as hos?
schools are the breading ground for woke socialist idiots.
that is a garden that needs to be weeded out!
Well, there you are, you failed woke. Best you look for jobs outside of the education system. IMO
Vito should move to a school district in Florida or Texas. Better weather, and he sure won’t have to worry about stupidity like this.
The lawyer from the Association of Superintendents said Mr. Perrone had no recourse, because he hadn’t signed anything. Well, there’s one recourse he has: social media! He can say whatever he wishes about the school board now, because now he has nothing to lose.
One year Mellon Bank told Focus On The Family they couldn’t bank with Mellon, because of their stand on abortion. Dr. James Dobson got on the air, and told his listeners what Mellon said. Many listeners wrote Mellon and said they were no longer interested in banking with Mellon and some who had accounts with Mellon closed them.
Did Mellon relent and let FOTF bank with them? No! They tried to tell Dr. Dobson to make his listeners stop writing them. Dr. Dobson told Mellon in so many words that he wasn’t responsible for other people’s actions. I think Mr. Perrone should encourage as many people as he can, to email the school board and tell the members what they think of the board’s decision.
Those “LADIES” at the school district have now caused Leftists some problems. It could be argued that a Leftist trying to use Leftist pronouns could be denied employment because their particular way of calling themselves is considered a microagression. Logically this is correct by their own actions, though Logic and Leftist are contradictory terms.
BUT In leftist parlance, ONLY conservatives are guilty of microaggressions.. NEVER THEM!
Dylan Mulvaney calls females “ladies” over and over again, but that’s okay because he is trans and we ladies should get on our knees and thank him for making money sharing his stereotype version of womanhood.