Exiled educator seeks to blame former colleagues at Dreyfus Intermediate
Francesco Portelos contends his career was sabotaged.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A technology teacher at Dreyfus Intermediate School, Stapleton, who languishes in one of the school system's notorious "rubber rooms," is suing two former colleagues whom he holds responsible for his exile.
Rosebank resident Francesco Portelos, 34, filed a lawsuit Feb. 19 in Staten Island Supreme Court, St. George, claiming defamation of character.
Portelos filed the suit pro se, meaning he's representing himself. In the legal papers, which are filled out by hand, he claims that he was removed from Dreyfus in April 2012, after teachers Susanne Abramowitz and Richard Candia initiated a series of complaints against him to Principal Linda Hill.
According to the suit, Ms. Abramowitz told the principal that Portelos had cursed at her and had been acting irrationally for weeks. Candia complained that Portelos had hacked into his e-mail and computer, the suit alleges. Portelos, in his court papers, contends "these statements are entirely untrue and intended to defame plaintiff."
After the initial complaints against Portelos, the school compiled more than 18 other allegations of misconduct against him, which have been assigned to the Department of Education's Office of the Special Commissioner of Investigations. Portelos has not been charged with any misconduct.
In his lawsuit, Portelos said the misconduct allegations pending against him have derailed his career with the DoE. According to court papers, "plaintiff, [Portelos] who aspired to move up to higher positions in education, such as superintendent, has been falsely labeled as a 'loose cannon.'"
He said he is taking education supervision and administration courses at the College of Staten Island to obtain a license as a school and district administrator. Part of the program entails shadowing and meeting with educators and administrators of other schools, which he has been unable to do because of the allegations and his removal from the classroom.
He seeks an unspecified amount in damages for the alleged defamation.
Ms. Abramowitz and Candia said they were not aware of the lawsuit and have no comment.
Since his removal, Portelos has been reassigned to an administrative office in Queens, where he has been blogging about his experience, and even posted a live-stream webcam video showing him sitting alone at a desk in an empty room -- all the while collecting his $75,000 salary.