DepEd suspends teacher who asked parents for TV

The Department of Education (DepEd) has suspended a public school teacher who allegedly asked for and got a TV set from the parents of students whom she earlier flunked.

Antonio Casangkapan, chief administrative officer of the Division of City Schools in Manila, said that Mary Ann Villanueva, a music teacher at Juan Luna Elementary School in Sampaloc, would be preventively suspended for 90 days while the investigation against her was ongoing.

The case against Villanueva was forwarded to the division by the DepEd-National Capital Region after the Inquirer reported the complaints made against her by the parents of several students.

“After a careful scrutiny of the records of the case, this office hereby finds existence of prima facie evidence against you,” said Ponciano Menguito, DepEd-NCR director IV.

“Accordingly, you are hereby formally charged pursuant to section 9 (g) of the revised rules of procedure of the Department of Education in [an] administrative case, for gross misconduct prejudicial to the best interest of service,” he added. The preventive suspension order was issued on May 12.

According to the parents of some of the students who were flunked by Villanueva in March, she asked them to donate a 32-inch TV set with speakers.

She also allegedly demanded a foldable iron ladder from another set of parents whose children also failed her subject.

According to another complaint, Villanueva charged her students for photocopies of her lectures.

In an earlier interview with Inquirer, Villanueva admitted receiving the TV set and foldable ladder. She also did not deny charging fees for photocopies of her lectures. But she said that the parents had voluntarily given her the TV set and ladder while her students were the ones who had insisted on paying for the photocopied lectures.