HOUSTON -- A Houston Independent School District principal was disciplined for flying a Mexican flag in front of his northwest Houston school.

Robert Pambello, principal of Reagan High School where 88 percent of the students are Hispanic, was disciplined after hoisting the Mexican flag below the American and Texas flags that usually fly in front of his school.

Some agreed with flying the Mexican flag.

"The majority of the population here is Mexican-American, so why not show support for the students?" said Juan Perez, a Reagan alumni and tutor.

"We're a government institution and it's not appropriate to fly the flag of a foreign country over one of our schools," Houston school district spokesman Terry Abbott said. "It was not the right thing to do."

Abbott said that once the Mexican flag went up, a complaint came in, so the regional superintendent ordered Pambello to take it down and he complied.

"He's a good educator who's done good things at that school," Abbott said. "In this case he's made a mistake in judgment and he's been appropriately disciplined for it. It's appropriate for only the U.S. and Texas flags to fly in front of schools."

Abbott said angry e-mails and calls from around the country are pouring in, demanding Pambello be fired.

Abbott said he could not discuss Pambello's punishment because it was a personnel matter. He would only say that the flag flack would not cost Pambello his job.