School Bus Driver Fired Over Stem Cell Talk

School Bus Driver Fired Over Stem Cell Talk


NEW YORK (Reuters) - A school bus driver who chatted about stem cell research with her pupils was fired for inappropriate behavior, a local newspaper said on Thursday.

Stem cell research was a divisive issue in the November U.S. presidential election. Supporters say it may eventually help people with conditions such as Alzheimer's and cancer but opponents argue it would be unethical when it involves cloning human embryos or harvesting cells from embryos.

The Buffalo News said Julianne Thompson, 42, was fired from her job in Grand Island, New York after parents complained about her discussing the issue with pupils on Nov. 1 -- the day before the presidential election.

Thompson told the newspaper she had read an interview where movie director Mel Gibson said more than 20 years of embryonic stem cell research had not cured any diseases but more than 300,000 cures had been found with adult stem cells. She said she then shared the stated facts with the pupils, without offering her opinions.

"In the midst of all the misplaced outrage, is the story of the sad and disturbing success of a fraudulent social 'conscience' that devalues life in favor of demonstrably failed science, wasting billions of dollars in the process," she was quoted as saying.

Education authorities in the town were not immediately available for comment but the paper quoted schools Superintendent Thomas Ramming as saying employees were not allowed to discuss political issues with students.

"You can say anything you want as a private citizen when you are off duty," Ramming said.