NYC teacher in trouble over Cuba trip resigns

Remember last years story about NYC public school history teacher Natan Turner taking high school students to Cuba for spring break? The New York Post has an update:

A Manhattan public high-school teacher who twice took students on embargo-busting field trips to Cuba has resigned, The Post has learned.

Nathan Turner, a popular history instructor at the top-tier Beacon School, allegedly led dozens of students and teachers on at least two such spring-break excursions.

Department of Education officials last week confirmed the resignation, along with that of fellow Beacon teacher Geoffrey Hunt, who also made jaunts to Castro country, according to sources.

Officials declined to discuss whether Turner's departure was related to two ongoing investigations sparked by the April 2007 Post exposé of the outings.

The Treasury Department is exploring the trips' legality. Educational travel to Cuba is limited to college students, sources said. Each traveler could be fined up to $65,000.

And Special Commissioner of Investigation Richard Condon is looking into whether Beacon administrators and Education officials sanctioned as many as six trips to Cuba, starting in 2000.

Principal Ruth Lacey has denied approving last year's trip, the most recent, but prior outings were advertised on the school's Web site and documented in its yearbook, sources said.

No mention of Rev. Walker's testimony.

Posted by Ziva at August 26, 2008 08:39 AM

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Posted by: Firefly at August 26, 2008 06:48 PM

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