VINELAND ? The state has revoked the teaching and administrative certificates of former Vineland Public Schools technology director Stephen Dantinne after ruling his on-the-job Google searches of pornography sites constituted ?conduct unbecoming a certificate holder.?
The Dec. 6 ruling by the state Department of Education Board of Examiners comes about a year after Dantinne was allowed to step down when a colleague, using a new web content filter, stumbled upon the pornography on Dantinne?s work computer.
As a result of that discovery, Dantinne resigned/retired from his $116,305-a-year position effective Feb. 1, 2013, and agreed to never seek another job with the district.
Subsequently, Superintendent Mary Gruccio notified the state Board of Examiners of Dantinne?s departure. She noted the district did not pursue tenure charges against Dantinne because it ?did not feel that the charges would have been sustained against a 32-year employee.?
The state board launched its own review, noting the websites visited by Dantinne in 2012 between Sept. 20 and Oct. 20 included ?pornographic images or aberrant and deviant subject matter.?
In a response to the state, Dantinne agreed to all of the allegations but insisted the revocation of his certificates wasn?t the ?appropriate penalty.?
?My decision to retire involved a consideration that I would be doing so with a record of 32 years of excellent service,? he said in his deposition. ?It never occurred to me that the State Board of Examiners would try to remove my various certificates.?
Between 1990 and 2012, Dantinne also was employed as an adjunct professor at Cumberland County College, where he taught computer science.
In his defense, Dantinne noted it was his duty as Vineland Public Schools technology coordinator to ?monitor, evaluate and maintain the school district?s web content filter so the district would be in compliance with the Children?s Internet Protection Act.?
?This duty required website visitations and monitoring to ascertain appropriate content and to determine whether or not to open or close a website,? Dantinne said in a sworn statement submitted by his attorney Frederick A. Jacob, who could not be reached for comment Wednesday.
Dantinne urged the state board to consider his exemplary work record and his service with the Air Force from 1975 to 1981. He also submitted sworn character references from Veterans Memorial Intermediate School Principal Joseph Camardo and D?Ippolito Elementary School Principal Gail Curcio.
The examiners noted the extensive list of Google hits found on Dantinne?s computer included many searches for porn stars engaged in anal sex.
?One would be hard-pressed to argue that websites such as ?glamorous anal porn stars? and ?anal addicts? could possibly be appropriate for student viewing and therefore needed to be further investigated,? the board stated.
In its ruling, the examiners noted when he was questioned by district administrators, Dantinne ?admitted accessing the sites and stated he had a compulsion that drove him to such sites.?
?Teachers ... are professional employees to whom the people have entrusted the care and custody of ... school children,? the board stated in its ruling. ?This heavy duty requires a degree of self-restraint and controlled behavior rarely requisite to other types of employment.?
Dantinne maintained he wasn?t a classroom teacher and students had no access to his computer. His office was at the district?s administration building on Plum Street.
But the board ruled ?his level of behavior fell far below that expected of a certificate holder.?
?Unfitness to hold a position in a school system may be shown by one incident, if sufficiently flagrant,? it ruled.
On Dec. 6, the board voted to revoke the certificates immediately. That included Dantinne?s principal and school administrator certificates of eligibility as well as his teacher of biological science, comprehensive science, data processing and supervisor certificates.
Dantinne may appeal the decision to the state education commissioner.
When contacted Wednesday, Gruccio did not comment on the board?s ruling. But she noted the district continues to take steps to avoid future misuse of its computer systems.
?We continue to periodically check Internet traffic in order to avoid these types of situations,? she said.
Dantinne now receives an annual pension of $57,160.80, or $4,763.40 per month, according to the state Treasury.
http://www.thedailyjournal.com/artic...nclick_check=1
I'm thinking about ensuring that none of my co-writers look at porn while working. :thumbsup
