If Claude Watson is a gifted program, why is the most gifted man in the department suspended? Seldomly will a student encounter a teacher who will treat him/her as his/her equal. Mr. Gefter is one of the few. He judges his students solely on their work ethic and subsequent results. Furthermore, he inspires and nurtures a good work ethic. This is man of reality unfortunately stuck in a system that does not recognize the treatment of students as young professionals. His removal is absolutely ridiculous.

I honestly cannot express the amount of gratitude and thanks I feel/have towards Mr. Gefter. Not only is he a great musician, but an excellent teacher. I know that at times it may seem like he is being too hard on us but in the end, I'm very grateful that he pushed us through the hard times. He didn't sugar coat anything - while for some of us, that may not seem like such a good idea, Mr.Gefter is a wise and a realistic man that made his students face the harsh reality. He not only helped his students improve musically, but he also helped us to become a better person. For that, I am and always will be,truly thankful.

This man's suspension is an absolute outrage. He is a gifted and passionate musician. Admittedly, he needs to work on his diplomacy, but his only flaw is that he treats his students like peers and professionals instead of infants who need to be coddled. To rob Haig's band majors of the opportunity to work with such a gifted and passionate musician is tantamount to a crime, and the people who caused this should be ashamed.

Mr. Gefter in an incredible teacher. Thanks to him, I know how to keep tempo, I know how to sight-read while singing, I know how to keep pushing myself to do better, and I know how to respect my teachers. Though his lessons may seem different and challenging and even scary at times, he truly does mean well in the end. Mr. Gefter, an incredible teacher and also a great friend, deserves better than this.

Mr. Gefter is an outstanding teacher. He is sometimes misunderstood by students due to a slight cultural barrier, but he does not deserve any of the recent treatment he has received. He pushed us all to be the best musicians we could be and I know that we all will continue to appreciate him for a long time.

I have not been taught by Mr. Gefter before however, throughout grade 9, I watched my friends, who were in his class ,grow as a musician. They were motivated by him and practiced everyday, allowing them to improve. By the end of the year, they sounded like professional musicians because of the encouragement and help that Mr. Gefter provided. They grew not only as musicians, but matured as well because they learned how to deal with constructive criticism. Mr. Gefter is a very professional and caring musician who will be able to push our band so that we, as musicians, are even better than what we thought we were capable of. He is the type of teacher that we need back in our band program.

I had Mr. Gefter in grade 9’s band class at Earl Haig Secondary. I won awards in middle school and joined his class feeling great about my skills. I left his class never wanting to touch another musical instrument in my life; it’s been 20+ years now and I never did touch another instrument. Mr. Gefter was extremely harsh and uncharitable with his comments. He found joy humiliating his students and I still remember Mr. Gefter driving other kids in my class to tears on several occasions. I had always attended his classes with anxiety, in fear that I would be his next target. He may be a good flute player (who often showed off his skills in the middle of class for no reason other than to feed his own ego) but he is a terrible teacher. I am glad to hear something eventually did happen to him at Haig, he was a ticking time bomb. I will always remember Mr Gefter, as he is someone who had ruined the joy of music for me forever.

I was looking to send Mr. Gefter a message at Earl Haig and I notice he is not there anymore. I came across this petition. I gather he was let go? Why? How did this happen? It is very difficult to lose your job in the public school board sector, so this comes as a real surprise!