Rio Grande High School teacher Anita Forte.

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Anita Forte, a nine-year teacher and the faculty sponsor for the Rio Grande class of 2007 who filed a grievance after one of her grades was changed to allow a Rio Grande senior to graduate, spoke publicly on June 20 for the first time on the episode. Here are her thoughts on the students who fail her classes, parental involvement and the teaching profession:

Tribune: How did you feel when the student's F was changed to a D?

Forte: I guess furious would probably cover it.

Tribune: How many other seniors did you fail in English this year?

Forte: A handful of them. I had 52 seniors and half were failing, but most of them figure it out - "My mom's going to kill me" - and they do the work. I had five who failed and they will be joining us for a fifth year at Rio. My class wasn't the only one they failed.

Tribune: How did you feel about those who didn't get to graduate with their class?

Forte: It's really hard to look at a student and say, "I'm sorry you didn't think life wouldn't happen." The tears start to flow, but I didn't make those choices for them. They have to learn there are consequences.

Tribune: Were you surprised that the state Public Education Department investigation exonerated you?

Forte: I would have been more surprised if they didn't back me up. The student was given multiple chances to improve his grade.

Tribune: Are there any questions you still have about how the decision was made to change your grade?

Forte: I don't know all the details and I'll never know all the details. I have to be OK with that.

Tribune: Did you feel pressured by the student's parent?

Forte: I felt mom pressure that Tuesday after he'd taken the final and I called to say he needed summer school. It was simply mom pressure. She didn't say, "I'm somebody important."

Tribune: What feedback are you getting from fellow teachers, your students or parents at Rio Grande?

Forte: They are very supportive and it's really nice to know they thought I was doing the right thing.

Tribune: What have you learned from this experience? What do you hope parents and students have learned?

Forte: Make sure you document, document, document. You have to have something to show what you did. I didn't have everything, but I definitely had what I needed.

I hope parents know you can go to teachers and talk to them. There are a multitude of avenues for students to work through if they are failing.

Students must learn that if you aren't doing the work, you are not going to pass. You need to show up, do homework, read. Please expect that you will fail, if you don't.

Tribune: Has your passion for teaching changed?

Forte: No, I still love the thought of teaching. This was like one of those bumps in the road. We hit it and moved on.