The teacher who is credited by Phoebe Prince's family as one of the few people who reported the bullying that led the teenager to take her own life has been fired.
South Hadley Latin teacher Debra Caldieri, seated, addressed the South Hadley School Committee in June to try and get some financial relief as she was placed on unpaid medical leave in December 2010. With Caldieri is Eileen Moore, the aunt of Phoebe Prince. (Republican file photo by Dave Roback) SOUTH HADLEY - The teacher who is credited by Phoebe Prince's family as one of the few people who reported the bullying that led the teenager to take her own life was fired last week.
As one of his last official acts as superintendent of the South Hadley School District, Gus Sayer fired Latin teacher Deb Caldieri last week via a letter that was mailed to her home.
Caldieri told The Republican's news partner ABC-40 that she is disgusted over the latest action in a long chain of events that she says began when she broke Sayer's mandate of silence in the wake of Prince's suicide.
The now unemployed Latin teacher hasn't been able to work since December 2010, when she said symptoms of her multiple sclerosis were exacerbated by stress she endured due to workplace bullying.
According to Caldieri, harassment by the now retired South Hadley High School principal Daniel Smith and Sayer led to her physical decline, and began the day after Prince, 15, died on Jan. 14, 2010.
As news of Prince's death reverberated through the school, a group of students became concerned about a boy who dated Prince and had not showed up for school.
Caldieri said that as she took the group of students out of school to check on the teen, she was under the assumption that they had permission from their parents and it was alright with school administrators, following a conversation a vice principal reportedly had with one of the students as she was leaving with the group.
It turns out Caldieri was incorrect and following a conversation with Smith, who later decided not to tell her when Prince's funeral was being held, things were never the same for her at the school.
On July 14, Caldieri appeared on Beacon Hill to discuss her experiences and to support the healthy workplace bill, which would make it a crime to bully an employee or colleague.
Caldieri told lawmakers that she was reprimanded for not feeling well and was once thrown out of the building after a misunderstanding with Smith.
Sayer, who sent a letter of resignation to the school committee in July, has consistently denied any wrongdoing in response to the handling of the Phoebe Prince suicide and the employment of Caldieri.
At the time of Prince's suicide, he repeatedly said that no one in the school administration knew there was an issue with bullying, a claim that Prince's family and the district attorney later refuted.
As she begged the school committee to grant her some financial assistance in June, Caldieri said she was at a low point and scared about the future.
"I lost the job I love, I can't see the students I loved I'm wheelchair bound, I can't get outside." Caldieri said. "I'm gonna lose this apartment. I'm gonna be homeless. I have no more finances, I used all my savings, sold every piece of jewelry I owned."
Prince's aunt, Eileen Moore, has been paying for Caldieri's health insurance since the former teacher's money ran out.
Now, Caldieri's emotions are even stronger, as she faces a reality where she may never be able to return to the profession she worked for years to contribute to.
"I'm disgusted teachers could be treated this way, it's a bad example for teachers to be treated like this from the administration," she told ABC-40. "I would like to get my workman's comp and I would like to get the accidental disability insurance retirement and get better."
The school committee didn't grant Caldieri any medical assistance, but with Sayer soon exiting his position, they said Tuesday that they will be hiring a consulting firm to aid in the search for a new superintendent.
Caldieri was replaced at South Hadley High School by the substitute teacher who covered her classes since she was placed on unpaid medical leave in December.