What makes him a good educator? Jim McAllister was the paragon of excellence at George Washington Carver High School in Omaha, Nebraska. He was regularly involved in school demonstrations, dutifully attended every football game, and was quick to lend a hand when any student needed counseling. For his contributions to the development of the student body, Mr. McAllister had been awarded Teacher of the Year a record three times. In his own words, What I do remember is that I loved my job. I was a teacher. An educator. And I think I made a difference. What makes him an awful educator? Jim McAllister knew that his best friend and fellow teacher, Dave Novotny, was having a sexual relationship with junior Tracy Flick. The average high school junior is around 16 years old, which makes their relationship not just immoral, but illegal. As a mandated reporter of child abuse and neglect, Jim McAllister was well aware of proper protocol, and instead chose to ignore the statutory rape of Tracy Flick. In Nebraska, such negligence can result jail time, fines, and the loss of both his job and teaching credential. How, exactly, could a teacher of law and ethics have ignored such a crime? It is tough to say, as the movie doesnt seem to be particularly concerned with McAllisters negligence. The overall story more or less follows his descent into poor decision-making, but the revelation about Novotny and Flick occurs at the beginning of the film when we still view McAllister as a good, upstanding teacher. His decision to ignore the misconduct committed by Novotny calls into question his moral ability to be an educator, as well as his understanding of the very academic content he is expected to teach.
