Twice-fired DPSCD teacher wants her job back — and a seat on the school board

A veteran teacher is hoping to get her job back and a spot on the school board this fall after she was fired for refusing to conduct classes in person.

The Detroit Public Schools Community District Board of Education voted during a meeting this month to fire math and science teacher Nicole Conaway for failing to report in person to her latest school assignment, Mumford High, for the 2022-23 and 2023-24 school years.

This is the second time the district has terminated Conaway for refusing to work in person . In 2022, the teacher repeatedly asked to be allowed to teach remotely due to COVID risks, citing recurring issues with her sinuses as well as chronic asthma.

Conaway told BridgeDetroit that she doesn’t want to take the risk of teaching in person and argued that the school doesn’t have the proper air purification and that masking alone is not enough.

“There’s no possibility of social distancing in this school, and there’s no testing, no vaccination policy, no requirement to even report if you’re infected,” she said.

Conaway filed a lawsuit in federal court in 2021 seeking to force the district to allow her to work remotely. During that time, she also sought time off and accommodations from the district under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act and the Americans With Disabilities Act, but was turned down. Conaway contends that DPSCD told her working virtually from home was not an option.

However, the State Tenure Commission called for a reversal of Conaway’s termination and, in January 2023, DPSCD Superintendent Nikolai Vitti said the district would abide by the commission’s decision and rehired her.

Conaway hasn’t been inside a school building since 2020 and hasn’t taught for the district since January 2023, even though she was reinstated and transferred to Mumford.

Conaway is also running for a spot on the school board this fall along with two core organizers from the By Any Means Necessary activist group, which she is heavily involved in.

Board members are expected to make regular visits to schools and, since 2022, the state Open Meetings Act has prohibited elected officials from participating in meetings remotely unless they are on military duty.

If elected, Conaway told BridgeDetroit that she would mask and practice social distancing at school board meetings. As for other duties, she said, she would consult her doctors and take the precautions they recommend. She added that attending meetings is less risky for her because there wouldn’t be a repeated and prolonged exposure to COVID-19 compared with being in a classroom. She can also check the vaccination status of board members and distance herself from people she would be sitting by.

Officials say Conaway broke district protocols

According to DPSCD’s board discipline summary chart, Conaway had violated multiple work rules, district policies on employee attendance, and standards of ethical conduct, as well as displayed unprofessional conduct.

During an investigatory interview conducted by the district, Conaway admitted that she had not reported to Mumford or any other district location for the past two school years. At the beginning of the 2023-24 year, she completed a medical examination ordered by the district. The exam showed Conaway has no medical limitations preventing her from performing her duties in person, according to the document. But Conaway said the exam wasn’t performed by her doctor or a pulmonologist, which “was not appropriate at all” since “I already had provided sufficient medical information.”

Conaway, in the investigatory interview, said that the district ordered her to return to school beginning March 11, but she refused to go back to class or attend any of the mandatory professional development sessions throughout the school year.

BridgeDetroit reached out to Vitti regarding Conaway’s case, but was referred to the discipline summary. The superintendent did not respond to an email regarding Conaway’s specific claims against the district.

Members of the Detroit Federation of Teachers did not speak on Conaway’s behalf at the school board meeting when she was terminated. DFT also did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

During the board meeting, DPSCD General Counsel Jenice Mitchell Ford read a June order from U.S. District Court Judge Gershwin Drain, noting Conaway would consider a compromise and return to school if it was approved by her doctor, the district met certain COVID-19 safety standards, and it guaranteed Conaway her own classroom and no in-person contact. However, Conaway said her doctor recommended that she stay at home until the virus is eradicated.

“If the only acceptable accommodation is permitting the plaintiff to work from home until the unforeseeable end of COVID-19, then the plaintiff does not seek an accommodation. She seeks to have it her way or no way,” Mitchell Ford read. Conaway told BridgeDetroit that she filed another request with the district for ADA accommodations in December, asked to be transferred to the DPSCD Virtual School and asked for her own classroom at its headquarters inside Northern Senior High School, which is no longer serving students. Her request was denied in March.

Fired teacher has been an outspoken critic

Conaway has spoken out against DPSCD multiple times throughout her 18-year career. When she taught at the now-closed Catherine Ferguson Academy, a high school for pregnant girls and teen mothers, Conaway fought against its closure in 2011.

In 2015, she rallied with her fellow teachers in Lansing to protest health care changes and then-Gov. Rick Snyder’s plan to reform education in Detroit. Later that year, she took part in teacher sick-outs, protesting building conditions like mold and broken windows, as well as large class sizes and cuts in benefits.

The largest sick-out closed 88 schools in January 2016 , prompting the district to file a temporary injunction naming 28 defendants, including Conaway.

While a judge eventually dismissed the lawsuit, DPSCD’s case against Conaway and former union president Steve Conn remained in court, with the district saying the pair encouraged the sick-outs. That August, a judge ruled against the school district, saying DPSCD failed to meet its burden and interpreted state law in a way that is “offensive to fundamental rights of free speech.”

Conaway has been doing online tutoring since last year for a private company to support herself.

The district’s summary chart notes Conaway’s prolonged absence negatively impacted student instruction and district operations at Mumford.

Several members of BAMN spoke on Conaway’s behalf at this month’s board meeting, including former DPSCD teacher Benjamin Royal, who is also running for a spot on the school board.

“Make no mistake, firing Nicole means firing a teacher for following her doctor’s orders to protect her health and well-being. Is that really the type of policy that this board wants to stand for?” Royal said.

Conaway said despite her conflicts with the district, she’s not interested in teaching anywhere else.

“I’ve always taught in Detroit. My commitment is to the young people in Detroit,” Conaway said. “This is my home. It’s my community.”

Micah Walker is a reporter for BridgeDetroit. You can reach her at mwalker@bridgedetroit.com .