A New Hampshire high school teacher has resigned after igniting a controversy over her choice of assigned reading materials. Stories assigned by Kathleen Reilly included “The Crack Cocaine Diet” by Laura Lippman, and “I Like Guys” by David Sedaris. Reilly, who also served as the head of the English Department at Campbell High School in Litchfield, New Hampshire, assigned the stories as part of a short story unit on “love, gender and family units.”
In a June 19 email to a Union Leader reporter, Reilly explained that, “The first story, ‘The Crack Cocaine Diet,’ was not intended to glorify bad behavior; rather, it was chosen for its tone and point of view and to show the often devastating consequences of drug use. In addition to its tone and style, the message of the story ‘I Like Guys’ was respect and acceptance, not an advocacy for homosexuality.” In the email, Reilly added that the stories were not left up to the students’ interpretation alone because “we discuss them extensively.” However, parent Sue Ann Johnson has said the stories promoted bad behavior and a “political agenda,” and they shouldn’t be incorporated into classroom teachings.
The school has permanently eliminated “The Crack Cocaine Diet” from the list of acceptable reading materials, says School Superintendent Elaine Cutler. “The reason the books were pulled was because I believe that there wasn’t enough parent notification about the topics that were being covered,” she said. “So, it was parent notification and the developmental age of the students and that varies; all 16-year-olds are not created equal.” The short story course will be examined by a committee comprised of teachers, parents, students, the principal and the curriculum director.
I was unfamiliar with “The Crack Cocaine Diet,” and remain sympathetic to allowing teachers broad latitude in choosing literature. That said, two paragraphs is about all one needs before it might occur to most teachers that assigning this story to teenagers might just be asking for trouble.
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