Teacher Fights for Job After Quip About Deadly Field Trip

A Brooklyn teacher is fighting for her job after a callous quip about a beach field trip that resulted in the drowning death of a student. "After today, I'm thinking the beach is a good trip for my class," teacher Christine Rubino commented on her cell phone, apparently referring to the death of the 12-year-old girl in another school. "I hate their guts." Minutes later a friend asked on Facebook: "Wouldn't you throw a life jacket?" The teacher responded: "No, I wouldn't for a million dollars."

Rubino, 38, told the New York Post that she made the comments in "pure anger" after a particularly frustrating day with her fifth-graders, and that the comments were intended to be private. But a fellow teacher (and Facebook "friend") copied the comments and turned them over to the school's assistant principal. The school district and an attorney for Rubino are currently arguing about her future. "It’s a witch hunt," a distraught Rubino said. "I like my job. I’m good at it. That’s all they should worry about." (More field trips stories.)