I am the wife of Stephen Williams, the fifth-grade teacher who filed a lawsuit against the Cupertino Union School District. In this letter, I would like to address several myths circulating about my husband.

The first myth is that Stephen made no attempt to resolve the conflict prior to filing a court case. To clarify, there were a series of meetings and correspondences between Stephen, the principal and the district about the issues in the spring of 2004. The parents remained anonymous. Only when all proposed lessons were repeatedly turned down did Alliance Defense Fund get involved. ADF sent a letter to the principal and the district appealing to them to change the policy and warned that there were grounds for a lawsuit. Correspondence between district lawyers and ADF lawyers began in the spring of 2004 so the suit could not have been a surprise as the district claims.

What few people have discussed is: 1. why the two parents who complained of excessive references to Christianity remained anonymous and were not willing to talk to Stephen face to face, and 2. why the principal didn't simply observe or invite parents or district representatives to observe those lessons that she was concerned about and then discuss them with Stephen afterward?

Stephen would have welcomed the principal and any interested parent into the classroom at any time to observe his lessons or to discuss future lessons. This would have been a particularly good tactic to use with the Declaration of Independence lesson, since the three documents involved are so important to our nation's history. It certainly would have been worth a try prior to banning the entire lesson.

The second myth I'd like to address is that Stephen has received numerous complaints from parents about references to Christianity. The truth is Stephen received the first-ever complaint—to his knowledge—in the beginning of last year after a child raised his hand in class and asked "why is under God in the pledge?" The majority of parents have been supportive. Stephen is only aware of complaints by two parents ever—both from last year's class. If there are more, why wasn't he made aware of them by the principal or the parents? If they come out of the woodwork now, why were they not important enough to bring up previously? And why didn't parents take the time to communicate with Stephen face to face and actually have a dialogue?

I would like to close with an appeal to stop the rumor mill that is currently plaguing Stevens Creek, propagated by those who have never taken the time to speak with Stephen in person about the issues. The rumors are ridiculous. Helping a student research the history of Hanukkah by writing the reference to 1,2 Maccabees on the board last year has blossomed into "writing daily scripture verses on the board."

Let's set a healthy example for our children about how to deal with conflict. Before engaging in a discussion about a person, always speak to the person first. No matter how much you disagree, do not communicate in a language of hatred. Because of the negative publicity, many parents and teachers are concerned about the reputation of Stevens Creek. What better way to show the integrity of their school than to reject gossip, communicate directly and to treat each other with respect? We need to realize that our children are watching, listening, and learning.

Sarah M. Williams

Mountain View

In this financial climate
lawsuit is appalling

Having taught in the Cupertino and Sunnyvale school districts, and given the present financial cutbacks for schools and inadequacies of the No Child Left Behind act, I find it appalling that a teacher would sue the CUSD over interpretations of the Christian influence on historical events.

In my opinion, it appears that such influence, along with other cultural religious beliefs and influences, has been thoughtfully studied by the CUSD and presented without discrimination in all the textbooks used.

R.S. Nowicki

Sunnyvale

Former student recalls
Stevens Creek experience

So I know that I'm joining the game a few weeks late (re: the Stephen Williams case), but I couldn't pass up an opportunity to write in after I found out that Williams is a teacher at the elementary school I attended.

I first felt that the initial facts surrounding the case didn't seem right when I recalled my own experience at Stevens Creek. Patricia Vidmar was the principal during my last few years there, and I distinctly remember reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, decorating the classrooms for the holidays with Christmas decorations and singing religiously themed songs/carols.

Granted, it's been around eight years since I was in elementary school, so I suppose she could have changed her policy.

However, after reading up on the details surrounding the case, I am convinced that Williams is being ridiculous, and the people penning hateful diatribes against Stevens Creek and Ms. Vidmar are being even more so. And I say this as a conservative (I think so) Christian.

It appears that many of those writing letters have not been doing their research, as evidenced by the fact that they tend to say, "What can you expect? It's California!" Of course California does not have the best reputation when it comes to education; however, if these people had used their brains and done a bit of research, they would have found out that Stevens Creek is one of the top public elementary schools in the country—most of the schools in the Silicon Valley area are likewise—probably a heck of a lot better than the schools attended by the children of the folks writing the angry letters. (Of course, I am speculating here.)

I found a bit of unintentional humor in the letter written by Melinda Michaels (Dec. 8), as she is from Florida. Last time I checked, people from Florida have plenty of their own problems concerning education, without having to butt into another state's.

Jaewon Kim

Cupertino