Rose Will Be Teaching Assistant : Sentence: Cincinnati educators plan for him to teach physical education and health at five inner-city schools.

Pete Rose will go from jail to gymnasium in January when he comes home to finish his sentence for cheating on his taxes.

Educators are planning for Rose to help teach physical education and health at five inner-city elementary schools designated by a federal judge. Rose will become a teaching assistant when he’s released from a federal prison camp in Illinois on Jan. 7 to start performing 1,000 hours of community service.

“We’ve arranged for him to work full time in the schools,” said Cecil Good, an assistant superintendent. “He’ll be working the same calendar as any teacher in the district.”

And doing the same things as any other teaching assistant in the city school system.

“He would be working directly under a certified teacher and do whatever kinds of tasks that teacher determines are most appropriate,” Good said. “For instance, in a gymnasium, if there are games going on, he may take a small group and work with them in a particular activity.”

U.S. District Judge S. Arthur Spiegel sentenced Rose last July to five months in prison and three months in a halfway house in Cincinnati. Spiegel also ordered Rose to “return to his roots in the inner city” by performing 1,000 hours of community service at the five elementary schools and a youth center.

The sentence followed Rose’s guilty plea to two counts of failing to report income from gambling, memorabilia sales and autograph appearances. He reported to a federal prison camp in Marion, Ill., to begin serving the five-month prison sentence Aug. 8.

Once released, he’ll get together with public school officials to begin performing the community service part of his sentence. Good drove to the Illinois prison camp earlier this month to see how Rose wanted to work in the schools.

“I shared our thoughts with him. He seemed real comfortable with the idea,” Good said. “We worked it out mutually.”

They agreed that he’d fit in as a teaching aide.

The school system was surprised when Spiegel specified that Rose work in the five schools for public service. Now educators are looking forward to having him around.

“We’re always glad to have assistants,” Good said. “We think with his athletic background he can help us in these schools. He’s looking forward to this work.”

He’s also looking forward to getting it over. Spiegel specified that Rose must perform at least 20 hours of his community service per week, but Rose is planning to work in the schools full time.

“He has 1,000 hours to perform. Obviously he’s anxious to get it over with as quickly as he can,” Good said.

Rose probably will spend one day a week at each of the five elementary schools, working with grades one through six.

When school lets out for the summer, Rose will finish his community service at an inner-city youth club.

“Many of the younger children probably won’t have an idea who he is, what his background is,” Good said. “But I think he’s still a hero to many children. As such, they’re likely to listen.”