Statements from tonights Board of Education Meeting

DIANA MANRIQUEZ

My family moved to Jasper County in April of 2007. My parents have lived in Turtle Cove for more than 15 years and I was excited to “come home” to a smaller, more personal community. I have always felt at home in JASCO. My brother attended school here and I was excited for my children to have the opportunity. In fact, my brother is well known to Mr. Joel Gaston, whose sons played football on the same team.

However, my son’s experience has been somewhat less idyllic than my brother’s. From the beginning of my son’s enrollment in JASCO Schools he has been physically and verbally attacked and harassed with the full knowledge of his teachers and the administration. The only adequate response I have ever received has come from Ms. McWhorter. And I had to bring my concerns directly to her, she was appalled and highly concerned that the first time she was hearing of my son’s problems was from his mother instead of her staff. What began as three students verbally and physically harassing my son turned into 16 students within the space of 9 weeks.

It is my perception that there is a vital breakdown in the enforcement of discipline beginning in the classroom. If the teachers had spoken up or enforced the basic rules for classroom discipline and safety immediately and consistently at the time of each incident, my son’s experience would not have turned so negative. What has happened to detention? Calling home to report certain problems or concerns? Not every infraction of the rules requires suspension or expulsion. However, it is my belief based on my son’s experiences and my personal interactions with school personnel and administration, that there IS a serious discipline problem at the school. Ms. McWhorter genuinely seems to be interested in the continuing improvement of the JCMS. I also believe that she has a substantial challenge ahead. As one of the 5% of active and interested parents in her school, I am invested in her success.

I also believe that the administrators and school staff have their hands tied by bureaucracy. It has been presented to me in conversation that, if you told any school principal in the State of Georgia they could remove 10 students who were known bullies or discipline problems, those principals would find an obvious and marked improvement to their schools. I submit to you that the administration CAN remove the students who are known bullies if they would utilize the tools they already have at hand.

If the JASCO teachers follow the discipline referral process which is already in place to document the incidents, within a few weeks, the disruptive students could be either removed from class or made to behave. Students would be better protected from those who would attack them because all the students would see that there ARE consequences for inappropriate behavior at JCMS.

My request to the Board this evening is that you initiate and/or oversee an investigation into the weaknesses in the discipline program and it’s lack of implementation as well as recommend reasonable changes to strengthen the ability of the administration and their staff to identify and remove their “10 students”.

CYNTHIA KING

I have not come here today hat in hand to make requests. I have not come here to ask that you look into the problems that have been cited or the issues that are raised. I am here to ascertain why the job the Jasper County citizens elected you to perform has not and is not being done.

I moved here from a county that won awards against seemingly insurmountable odds. I moved here from a county that believes that you work harder with the students that need extra help to excel. I moved here from a school system with a position of absolute dedication to the education and safety of the students in their schools. I have been involved with mentoring students. I have supervised field trips, and I have worked fundraisers, soliciting donations when needed. I have written checks when fundraisers fell short. I have invested in my children's future and the future of their friends and classmates with my time, my money and my attention. I have done what needed to be done and I will do no less here.

My children have suffered physical and verbal assault at the hands of Jasper County students aided by the lackadaisical attitude of the administrators. During a conversation on October 24, 2008, Mr. Brinson threatened, that because of my actions, my children would suffer immediate expulsion if they so much as put a toe out of line. He then went on to state that this would solve his problem with me. Obviously, his problem has not been solved.

My children have endured bullying and harassment unchecked by the adults paid to supervise them. They are fearful in the hallways that this board has been entrusted to keep safe. I have been forced to withdraw my children from this unsafe atmosphere and pay for my children's education in alternative facilities.

The disciplinary policies adopted by the school system are only enforced when it is to the administration’s benefit. They are implemented in a discretionary manner and because of that they are useless. I cannot request my children adhere to these policies when the administration chooses to only apply the policies suited to their convenience and then only to arbitrarily chosen students. I am appalled.

My goal is and always will be the safety of my children and that my children receive the education they deserve. I would wish the same for all Jasper County students. I want the education my taxes are paying for. I am the taxpayer that insists the administration do what they are being are paid to do or move aside for someone that will.

Do you really want to live in a county that will one day be run by children who have been raised to believe that their actions have no consequences and this just to make statistics look good. Do you want a generation of self serving bullies that have no respect and no remorse? I cannot believe you do. Now is the time to step up and stop enabling this administration to do just that.

Now that this situation has been brought to your attention I request that this board do the job you have been charged with. Make examples of today's bullies and the next thing you know tomorrow’s students will be safe and educated. I am asking you to make your stand for safe and reasonable education. Make your term here count as something more than a skewed statistic.

I am a mother, a taxpayer and a voter. I am a house wife that would love to help someone win a campaign. I request that this board investigate whether or not the students in the Jasper County School System are safe and also to ask this board to require the school administration to adhere to the disciplinary policies set out in the agendas without arbitrary discretionary input. I earnestly await your response.

DONNA TELLEY

Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for allowing us to participate in your session tonight. I want to begin by assuring you that throughout our dealings with the Jasper County School System, my daughters and I have always been willing to work with the administration toward a solution to the problems we have encountered. To help with the work, not just to complain.

I am the grandmother of students in the Jasper County School system. My son attended Jasper County high school where he received an exemplary education. He attended North Georgia College and excelled. I attribute his academic achievements in part to the education he received in the Jasper County School system. However, what my family is currently experiencing with the school system has me worried that students are not receiving the same education and actually may be in physical jeopardy.

I have spoken with Mr. Brinson about these problems and he has assured me that his yearly statistics do not show any problem with the safety of students – that this is just my PERCEPTION. However, if acts of violence, bullying and harassment are not treated as problems when they are reported and no discipline is administered than I suggest to you that Mr. Brinson’s “statistics” are skewed.

Since the onset of our efforts, we have heard from other parents regarding safety issues involving their students and the discipline administered (or not) by the administration. Their perception is the same as ours. A few have removed some or all of their students for home schooling. If this continues, it can only hurt the school system. Even worse some of these parents stated that, because of economic issues, they have had to leave their students in an environment that makes them fearful for their safety. I hope that everyone in this room agrees with me that this is unconscionable.

Through our efforts, we have found a few administrators and professionals who have recognized that our students have had difficulties and who tried to help rectify our individual situations, yet we believe that these administrators and professionals are operating with their hands tied by bureaucracy.

At each turn, we have been told that the confidentiality of students is absolute. However, this confidentiality only exists for the transgressor. As you know, everyone who witnessed an incident knows what happened to the victim. If no one is allowed to know that punishment for unacceptable behavior was administered, it leaves the victim vulnerable and empowers the transgressor. Our experience is that those students who witness the transgressor “getting away with it” assume they can too, thus exacerbating the unsafe environment. We have been repeatedly assured that the proper discipline is always applied, yet the disciplinary policy stated in the school agendas has not been consistently applied in our cases. Our experience, and the experiences we have heard about from numerous other parents, clearly show that the stated disciplinary policies are not applied and that there is a real problem with the safety of students in the Jasper County School system.

Through an article in the Monticello News, we recently learned that Mr. Brinson has been appointed as “Coach” for new superintendents of Georgia schools by State Superintendent Kathy Cox. I am concerned that this appointment may have, in part, been derived from the “statistics” Mr. Brinson quotes which give an outward appearance that our schools operate in a safe learning environment for all students. As I have stated, our experience shows that this is not the case.

The safety of our students should be of paramount concern to all Jasper County citizens. As a taxpayer I want to get what I paid for. We paid for the policies to be stated, we paid for the agendas to be provided to each student and we pay for the adults in charge to implement these policies. I also believe that all Jasper County citizens should be concerned that without a consistently disciplined environment, teachers cannot teach and students cannot learn. A point in fact is that the middle school has been on “needs improvement” for 5 years. Through my family’s experience since April of 2007, I am not surprised.

In order to be fair to all students, the disciplinary policies stated in the school agendas need to be applied across the board without arbitrary administrative discretionary input. If a student violates a rule, the student will be punished according to the rules – end of story. This, of course, would apply to my family students as well. I believe that we all know that it takes less time and effort to consistently require children to adhere to the standards of behavior requested from any authority (parent or school system), then to have constant disruption day in and day out.

I am here tonight as a family member of students attending the Jasper County School system, and as a taxpayer, to request that this board investigate whether or not the students in the Jasper County School System are safe and to ask this board to require the school administration to adhere to the disciplinary policies set out in the agendas without arbitrary discretionary input. I earnestly await your response.