(KOAT) — RIO RANCHO, N.M. —When a Cleveland High School student wrote about Jesus and drugs for an assignment, that caused some controversy in Rio Rancho — now a teacher at the school is off the job.
“I love teaching,” said creative writing teacher Katrina Guarascio. “I’m not there to judge them. I’m there to encourage them.”Guarascio said her creative writing class is a safe place for students to find their voices.
The assignment was to take a fairy tale or legend and rewrite it in modern times. One student changed the biblical story about Jesus handing out bread and fish to the poor to Jesus handing out marijuana to the sick.
“I don’t take any personal offense. It’s not written for me. It’s written for them. It’s how they can express themselves,” said Guarascio.
