Bennish back in class

Charlie Brennan, Rocky Mountain News

Published March 13, 2006 at midnight

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AURORA — Jay Bennish returned to his classroom this morning as Overland High School sought a return to normalcy in the wake of a national controversy over his teaching methods.

"Mr. Bennish is a member of our Blazer family, and as such he will be welcomed back here," said Principal Jana Frieler, in a brief press conference outside the school.

A tight rein was kept on members of the media who were restricted to one spot on the north side of the school property, and did not see Bennish enter the building.

It was the first day back in class for Bennish, after being put on paid administrative leave March 1, after a 10th grader’s 21-minute recording of a Bennish lecture to a world geography class was made public.

Bennish was reinstated on Friday after two days of meetings between Bennish, Cherry Creek School officials, and Bennish’s attorney, David Lane.

Bennish has been widely criticized for politically-charged remarks caught on the recording of a Feb. 1 class. His comments that day included his drawing a comparison between President Bush and Adolf Hitler.

Frieler this morning said she had been well aware that Bennish’s geography discussions typically go beyond learning the names of rivers, mountain ranges, and state capitols.

"It’s not about maps anymore," she said. "It’s about politics, it’s about religion, it’s about culture."

One of Bennish’s students, sophomore Chelsea Williams, said she is glad Bennish is back in the classroom. She doesn’t expect to see much change.

"He might be a little more cautious now," she said, who was in the specific class that had been recorded by classmate Sean Allen.

"I thought he made it clear that he wasn’t saying Bush and Hitler were the same person, but I think some students might have got the wrong impression."

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