Former Teachers Speak Out Gulen Charter Schools...
BATON ROUGE- Former teachers at Kenilworth Science and Technology Charter School in Baton Rouge are making strong allegations about what happened inside the school during their time there. They claim unfair treatment toward teachers and an unsafe environment for students. That's in addition to two lawsuits News 2 uncovered against the organization that runs the school, Pelican Educational Foundation. The state is investigating Kenilworth as part of looking into the parent company with ties to the Turkish culture. Wednesday, Pelican lost control of another school it operated, Abramson Charter in New Orleans. The state cites allegations of sexual misconduct among students and not properly reporting it. The two former teachers, who spoke to News 2 anonymously for fear of retaliation, say inside the walls of Kenilworth is a troubling environment, brought to light in two lawsuits, one about teacher discrimination, the other about student mistreatment. One teacher said, "I watched them be discriminated against and I experienced the same sorts of discrimination based on race, national origin, religion, ethnicity. It was an atmosphere where there was a double standard." The teachers say as women, they were given more duties than male staff, and as Americans, given fewer breaks for personal time, while the Turkish-Muslim staff members were given ample opportunities for prayer time, away from students. However, one current teacher says she doesn't agree. Shanza Veal said, "I haven ...