Florida math teacher canned after comparing students’ skin color to coffee roasts

A Florida high school teacher was ousted from his job last week after he shockingly likened the skin color of some of his students to coffee roasts earlier in the year.

AP statistics teacher Cary Altschuler made the ill-conceived comparison when he put three students’ photos on the board with the descriptions “extra cream,” “medium roast” and “dark roast” next to them, the Palm Beach Post reported.

The Palm Beach County school board reportedly approved the teacher’s termination last Wednesday after the district’s superintendent recommended Altschuler be canned.

Lake Worth High School Principal Dr. Elena Villani told the school community after the incident that Altschuler displayed “egregiously inappropriate content,” CBS 12 reported.

She additionally said his actions have “no place in school settings or anywhere” and called it “racially charged.”

The under-fire teacher told CBS 12 last week he made a mistake when he attempted to joke around with his students.

When two students were teasing each other about their skin tone, he said he interjected in the back-and-forth, saying “if they were going to make fun of each other to be creative.”

He admitted it was “stupid of him” to do.

During the district’s probe into Altschuler, he revealed two of the photos were from students in his class this year and one photo was a student from last year, according to the investigation’s findings reported on by WPTV.

The district stated Altschuler violated policies including ethical misconduct, inappropriate comments/interaction with students and failure to follow established policies, the station reported.

His termination is effective August 25. He’s been on assignment away from students over the last few months.