Pine Crest School, a private institution in South Florida, has been involved in an ongoing controversy due to its decision to fire a math tutor, Maha Almasri, over her social media posts about the Israel-Hamas conflict. The school subsequently expelled her 15-year-old child.
The school, in a statement released on Friday, described Almasri’s posts as “hateful and incendiary,” stating that such content is not acceptable within its community.
Almasri, acknowledging her Palestinian-American heritage, stated that her intention was to highlight the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and not to offend, as reported by Local 10 News.
The school claimed that Almasri’s posts, especially one graphic challenging the commonly held view of the conflict’s origins, raised significant concern among students and parents.
Despite requests to remove the controversial content, Almasri reportedly continued with more provocative posts, while she contests that her posts were misinterpreted and taken out of context.
The situation escalated when Almasri’s child was expelled from the school. Almasri expressed disbelief and distress, questioning the necessity of involving her child in the matter.
The school justified its action by citing the impact of Almasri’s actions on her child’s eligibility to continue as a student.
This incident led to a public petition urging the school to reconsider the expulsion of Almasri’s child.
The school remains firm, stating that Almasri’s actions violated the employee handbook and the school’s enrollment agreement, as detailed in an earlier Local 10 News report.
The case has sparked debate over the boundaries of free speech and the consequences of social media activity in educational settings, highlighting the complex interplay between personal expression and professional responsibilities.
