Badly? Thats for you to decide....

Teacher misses class to look for love

Some parents in a Texas school district say a grade school teacher's search for love shouldn't include a trip to the set of "The Bachelor." Amber Alchalabi, a teacher at Colony Bend Elementary School in Sugar Land, Texas, wrote to parents, telling them she would be absent for at least a week. Now the reason can be seen weekly on ABC, where she is competing with 25 other women for the affection of "The Bachelor," the Houston Chronicle said Wednesday. "That is a legitimate concern," a district spokeswoman said, adding that Alchalabi ' s principal knew of the tapings but others didn ' t because of confidentiality restrictions. The fourth grade teacher missed 22 school days -- 10 unpaid -- and prompted complaints from at least two parents who said her appearance on reality TV was not an acceptable excuse.

Parent Lesley White complained in a letter to Fort Bend Independent School District that the program "does not promote family values, moral values or appreciation of the normal 'dating' process." Alchalabi, responding by e-mail to questions from the Chronicle said, "I am surprised and saddened that my personal life and pursuit of a long-term relationship would upset my community."