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QuickTake:
Springfield Public Schools acknowledged the post’s existence and said they are “taking this matter seriously,” but did not give details. Meanwhile, some Thurston students walked out of class in protest.
A second local teacher is in the spotlight for posting on social media after the death of conservative political activist Charlie Kirk.
Students and members of the public are criticizing Thurston High School’s theater teacher for posting “Good” in a repost of a news article about Kirk’s death on a personal social media account. Kirk supporters, locally and nationally, have widely shared a screenshot of the teacher’s comment.
Brian Richardson, Springfield Public Schools director of communications and community engagement, said the district is aware of the teacher’s social media post, but did not specify if the district is disciplining the teacher. Richardson said in a statement that the post’s contents do not reflect the views of the district.
“While we cannot comment on individual personnel actions, know that we are taking this matter seriously,” Richardson said in a statement Thursday, Sept. 18. “We expect all employees to uphold professional standards in their conduct, both in and out of school. We will continue to focus on supporting our students and delivering the high-quality education our students and community deserve.”
Lookout Eugene-Springfield reached out to the teacher for comment and received no response.
Jonathan Gault, president of the Springfield Education Association — the teacher’s union in the district — said the union did not want to comment.
What school policy allows
District policy allows teachers and staff to have any political opinion they want and participate in political activities that are legal.
“Such discussion and persuasion, however, will not be carried on during the performance of district duties, except in open discussion during classroom lessons that consider various candidates for a particular office or various sides of a particular political or civil issue,” the policy states.
Springfield’s social media policy for teachers has some restrictions on what they can post. They cannot post confidential information about students, staff or district business. They also cannot post photos of district facilities, staff, students, volunteers or parents without permission, and they must “treat fellow employees, students and the public with respect while posting.” Posts also cannot cause disruptions at school.
“Staff actions on social media websites, public websites and blogs, while on or off duty, which disrupt the school environment, are subject to disciplinary action up to and including dismissal,” the policy states.
Public response, similar incident
The screenshot and news of the Thurston teacher’s post have been shared on national platforms, from popular conservative social media influencers to a Catholic political advocacy website.
A group of Thurston High School students walked out of school Wednesday to protest the teacher’s employment at the school, according to The Register-Guard and local TV reporting.
The Thurston teacher is not the first local school employee to make comments approving of Kirk’s death.
Pleasant Hill School District put an employee on paid administrative leave after the employee posted, “Well, he got what he preached,” citing a 2023 quote from Kirk in which the conservative leader said that having some shooting deaths was a “prudent deal” in order to keep gun rights.
Lane County Sheriff deputies increased patrols outside the school after the teacher’s post caused a significant amount of public feedback. Pleasant Hill School District Superintendent Jim Crist said there were no credible threats.
Nationwide, people who posted or spoke in support of Kirk’s death or against his political philosophies are facing backlash from conservative activists and sometimes discipline from employers.
