“Hopelessly insane, some almost maniacs”: New York city’s war on “unfit” teachers.

This article explores how Dr Emil Altman and the New York City Board of Education manipulated prevailing narratives of disability in a crusade to rid their city school system of “unfit” teachers during the late 1920s through to the early 1940s. Capitalising on fears of disability related to ideas about efficiency and eugenics, Altman and board officials redefined the purpose of the New York City Board of Education’s Medical Examiner, pathologised unsatisfactory teaching as illness or disability, introduced new standards and tests required to gain a permanent teaching licence, and forced over 100 teachers out of the school system. An examination of theNew York Timescoverage of this struggle over teacher tenure, retirement policy, competence, and pensions shows how skilfully Altman crafted rhetoric based in current ideas of fitness in order to expand his control over teacher examining and retiring and to help the Board of Education address a major budget deficit. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]