'Angels In America' Outrage Sidelines Temecula Valley USD Teacher

TEMECULA, CA — It is uncertain whether Temecula Valley High School's embattled drama teacher, Greg Bailey, will set foot inside Golden Bear Theater this year. After becoming the focus of an irate parent and the Temecula Valley Unified School District governing board in May, he was placed on paid leave, he told The Press-Enterprise. Now, he is directing "Hamlet" for Shakespeare in the Vines to start the school year. Though directing the play is a dream he's held since college, this is not the stage he is longing for.

In May, mother Tracy Nolasco claimed her daughter, a student of Bailey's, was "forced" to read "Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes." That proclamation resulted in Bailey's paid leave and undecided future employment with the district, according to the PE.

According to multiple reports, students had their choice of several plays to read, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning "Angels in America" by Tony Kushner, which Bailey forewarned contained sexual situations and details about the AIDS epidemic.

Nolasco insists her daughter was "unprepared" for what she would read, adding that reading such material isn't like a bad meal you can throw up. It is in your brain now.

"My problem with 'Angels in America' and with Mr. Bailey is the fact that that [play] was offered as a choice," she told the PE. She alleged the play was in the [school] library for over 20 years. "And he took it upon himself to make copies and to distribute it to my daughter."

Bailey described the play as life-changing for some students. "I'm not talking about LGBTQ+ students. I'm talking about students who are expanding their worldview or gaining empathy by thinking about other people's experiences," he told the PE.

Nolasco contended during a May 16 school board meeting that she attempted to email the teacher and intervene on her daughter's behalf, but her email was blocked by the school system and flagged as inappropriate content.

Following the meeting, in which Trustees Joseph Komrosky, Danny Gonzalez and Jennifer Wiersma said "Angels In America" contained inappropriate content, Bailey was removed from the classroom.

The three trustees were elected to the TVUSD board in November after financial backing from the Inland Empire Family PAC led by Pastor Tim Thompson of 412 Church Temecula Valley. The PAC works "to stop the indoctrination of our children by placing candidates on school boards who will fight for Christian and Conservative values."

In their short tenure — about nine months — Komrosky, Wiersma, and Gonzalez have banned any murmur of critical race theory; held a controversial and costly critical race theory "panel" that many TVUSD teachers dubbed "indoctrination camp"; they censored education about California's gay rights movement; have defied the state's education code; fired the district superintendent; hired their team of attorneys at taxpayers' expense to defend against ongoing lawsuits over their actions; have sparked numerous TVUSD student protests; and put the district in a negative national spotlight.

A website, recallall3.org, has been established by One Temecula Valley PAC to get out the recall message, recruit volunteers and solicit donations to oust the three board members.

During an Aug. 5 recall event in Temecula Wine Country, Svante Myrick, president of People For The American Way, was on hand. He warned the audience that the country's top universities will look down on applicants from the TVUSD if the students show "shocking ignorance" of history and culture.

The three trustees have maintained they are simply trying to protect TVUSD students and the rights of parents and legal guardians.

According to Bailey, the current makeup of the school board is "dangerous." The teacher, who has been employed in the district since 2018, told the PE, "The ultimate negative here is that (the school board is) dismantling the school district in Temecula by making it untenable for quality teachers to want to work here."

Bailey is still listed as the TVHS drama teacher on the school's website, and the plays for the 2023-24 season have been announced: "Eurydice," "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead," and "The Mystery of Edwin Drood."

Phone and email attempts to contact the district information officer went unanswered as of this report. Their comment will be added when a reply is received.

Read the full story on The Press-Enterprise.