The vegan teacher…

Brian Anthony Miller, NBC5 Next
What a week! After re-editing my first package- some issues needed to be taken care of- it was off to Williams Bay, Wis. I arranged a meeting to interview Dave Warwak, the vegan teacher fired by the school board in suburban Fox River Grove.

I read about this case and found myself with more questions than answers. I sought to find the truth.
To me, this case cannot be broken down in black and white. There is a lot of grey area. Warwak made some mistakes during this ordeal. The truth is, Warwak made too many waves too quickly. Transformations of the school curriculum and menu choices, mandated by our government, will never happen as quickly as Warwak wanted them to. But he did what he felt he had to do. It was brave of him to do what he did, despite the fact that he could of gone about it in a more subtle way. This is a very sensitive issue, and the parties involved were caught up in the emotion.
As a journalist, I want to be the one who stands in the middle of such controversy. I try to separate the emotional side and stick to facts. That’s all I ever do as a journalist. I read over 80 pages of the records from the dismissal hearing. I read every newspaper article written about this case since April of 2007. I know more about this case than I set out to. I did more reporting and researching than will be found in a two minute news story. I understand why some parents were upset and why the school fired him. I know this started with the reaction to the “Peep Project.” I understand how Warwak quarreled with the head of the cafeteria about removing posters promoting drinking milk. And I understand how it evolved into Warwak being insubordinate to his superiors, ultimately leading to his termination.

I want to listen to what both sides have to say and then report the story. I really wanted to include quotes from parents, students, anyone that will talk. The trouble with a story involving children is that I cannot interview a child without their parent’s consent. I contacted the principal of his former school and made a call to the District 3 administration. I included what little information I was given. Due to time restrictions- a deadline must be observed in all of this- I could not track down Warwak’s former students, contact each of their parents, get my camera and microphone and go to each child’s house. I wanted to have something like that in the story. In fact, if a parent of a former student contacted me now that the story has aired, I would pitch a follow up story to the NBC news team. I would be there, mic and camera in hand, and give them a chance to tell their side.

I did my best to be neutral. I am not for or against veganism or what the school board did when they fired Warwak. It is not my job or my place to pick a side. That’s for the public to do. All I ask is that people look at both sides with an open mind as I did.