HERNANDO COUNTY, Fla. — Fifth-grade teacher Jenna Barbee said she showed students the Disney movie Strange World because of its themes on the environment and taking care of our planet.
Not because it features a gay character.
“I don’t think it’s a focal point at all. The whole character it’s involved with is a side character. It shows a tiny tiny bit at the beginning of the movie. And a tiny tiny bit after," Barbee told ABC Action News reporter Erik Waxler.
But Barbee, who is in her first year at Winding Waters K-8 in Weeki Wachee, is under investigation by the Florida Department of Education.
She got a letter saying the DOE is looking into her alleged misconduct to determine if disciplinary actions should be pursued.
“Do you think you did anything wrong," Waxler asked her.
“No. Not even in the slightest. My students. They never noticed. I frankly did not notice at all…I had no idea it was going to be a big deal. But none of us noticed that there were aspects…did I notice that one of the characters was LGTBQ and part of that community? Yes. Because I’m in tune to things. Did I think it was an issue? Not at all," said Barbee.
The parent who reported the teacher to the state happens to be Hernando County school board member Shannon Rodriguez.
Her daughter was one of the students in the group Barbee showed the movie to.
“You showed a movie that wasn’t sanctioned school material. Thus stripping the innocence of my ten-year-old," Rodriguez said in a school board meeting May 9th.
Rodriguez is among those calling for the Hernando superintendent to resign over several issues.
She said at last week’s school board meeting it's not a teacher’s job to impose their beliefs on a child.
“As a parent, it’s my job to teach my child about the birds and the bees in relationships. And for me to decide at what age I want to embark on those conversations. But not following policy and procedure, Ms. Barbee stripped me of my right as a parent to have those conversations prematurely.”
Barbee said she apologized to Rodriguez because she doesn’t want any student to feel uncomfortable, but she stands by the film’s message and her own.
“My whole point of showing this is I preach positivity and kindness to my students every day. I preach acceptance for everything and everyone just for who they are every day. So I guess that’s why I didn’t see this was going to be such a big deal.”
The Department of Education responded to questions about this case by saying they don’t comment on pending investigations.
Barbee posted her thoughts on what happened in a Tik Tok video.
@becomingabetterbarbee I am the teacher. Here is the truth. #indoctrination #disneymovie #disney #strangeworld #viraltweet ♬ original sound - Jenna Lynn
The Hernando County School District sent the following letter home to parents about the movie.
"Yesterday, the Disney movie 'Strange World' was shown in your child's classroom," the school district said. "While not the main plot of the movie, parts of the story involves a male character having and expressing feelings for another male character. In the future, this movie will not be shown. The school administration and the district's Professional Standards Dept are currently reviewing the matter to see if further corrective action is required."
An official letter from the state board of Education said after a complaint was received, "this office has determined an investigation is warranted into allegations that you engaged in inappropriate conduct."
