THE CONE OF SHAME

Originally, I was going to write about that guy in Queens who was flying a remote control helicopter that went out of control and chopped his head off, but that seemed pretty gruesome to end the week with. So, I decided to choose a story that was a bit more entertaining and actually got a snicker out of me as I was reading it. So, a teacher in Florida, go figure, decided it would be a great idea to put those dog collar cones, that they put on dogs to prevent them from licking themselves after surgery, on her students as a joke as if to shame them. Would it shock you if I told you she might lose her job over it? I have to say that I found it kind of funny.

Pasco County school officials didn't find it too funny, though, when they caught Zephyrhills High School  teacher Laurie Bailey-Cutkomp using a cone-shaped dog collar she called "the cone of shame" to punish misbehaving students after some teens posted photos of the incidents on Facebook last month. Parents saw the embarrassing pics and complained immediately.

Ninth graders at the west Florida school said the 47-year-old science teacher and former veterinarian fastened the "cone of shame" on students who arrived late for class or virtually acted up. One student said, "I was in second period drinking soda, and she said, 'Do I have to put the cone on you?' When I didn't say anything, she put it on me." 

Bailey-Cutkomp brought the cone to school after showing students the Pixar movie "Up" during a slow day right before spring break last school year. The 2009 animated flick featured a dopey dog named Dug who is forced to wear a "cone of shame" as punishment. Bailey-Cutkomp was booted from the classroom and is awaiting a school board hearing to determine her fate at the school. According to a letter to the teacher, Pasco County schools superintendent Heather Fiorentino wrote: "I am stunned that you would put dog collars on students for any reason."

Bailey-Cutkomp, who has been teaching full-time since 2002, told school officials that the collar was meant to be a joke and she didn't mean to hurt or embarrass anyone and some of her students actually backed her up. I have to say, though, how can she not think that putting a cone around a child's head would not be embarrassing? I mean I get the joke part, but as a joke, you don't threaten to put it on them for misbehaving. You put it on them really quick to show them what it might feel like and not as a punishment.

One other ninth grade teacher wrote in Bailey-Cutkomp's defense to the school board: "Whatever mistakes Ms. Bailey Cutkomp made, it was a mistake that I doubt she will make again. Furthermore, what I have witnessed at ZHS certainly makes me believe that she has much to offer the students." A school board hearing on the matter has yet to be scheduled. Either way, it still gave me a chuckle to see these cones around a kid’s neck. If it was my kid, maybe I wouldn't have found it so funny, but I would have at least asked my child if they felt embarrassed wearing the collar. If they didn't; then no harm, no foul. If they did, all hell would obviously break loose!