Student Suspended for Call to Mom in Iraq

Newsday ^ | 05/06/05 | AP

[Responsibility1st]

COLUMBUS, Ga. -- A high school student was suspended for 10 days for refusing to end a mobile phone call with his mother, a soldier serving in Iraq, school officials said. The 10-day suspension was issued because Kevin Francois was "defiant and disorderly" and was imposed in lieu of an arrest, Spencer High School assistant principal Alfred Parham said. The confrontation Wednesday began after the 17-year-old junior got a call at lunchtime from his mother, Sgt. 1st Class Monique Bates, who left in January for a one-year tour with the 203rd Forward Support Battalion. Mobile phones are allowed on campus but may not be used during school hours. When a teacher told him to hang up, he refused. He said he told the teacher, "This is my mom in Iraq. I'm not about to hang up on my mom." Parham said the teen's suspension was based on his reaction to the teacher's request. He said the teen used profanity when taken to the office. "Kevin got defiant and disorderly," Parham said. "When a kid becomes out of control like that they can either be arrested or suspended for 10 days. Now being that his mother is in Iraq, we're not trying to cause her any undue hardship; he was suspended for 10 days."

[Hunble]

The folks at Fox could set up some sort of way that he could talk with his mom, maybe even be able to see her at the same time.

BINGO!

This is what we want to hear. How can we, as American citizens, help with this situation?

That was an outstanding suggestion.

[Nov3]

Are the new Freepers DU infiltrators, or just the stereotypical right-wing boogey man the left is always accusing us of being?

Unfortunatley it is the stereotypical right-wing boogey man the left is always accusing us of being. These people are conservatives because it is more rigid and punishing than the alternative.

[mware]

I am a teacher and given the details as I am aware of them,this situation should never had reached this point. If I would have been in the teachers position, after finding out that the call was from his mother I would have stayed next to him until the conversation was over. I would have also gone to bat for the boy so that arrangements could be made for him to receive calls from his mom.

The teacher put the boy in a confrontational situation. I do not condone his behavior, and it appears he is aware that he did not deal with it correctly, but truth be told if it was my mom on the line, I don't know what I would have done.

[lepton]

Everyone in the military Reserves, never dreamed that America would actually go to war during the time that they had signed up for.

Well that's stupid.

[murdocj]

While not terribly impressed with the 10-day suspension, I've reluctantly got to side with the school on this one.

http://www.murdoconline.net/archives/002298.html

I know that won't be a popular opinion, but I call 'em the way I see 'em.

[Nov3]

I haven't read all 179 posts yet. But has anyone asked what kind of "mother" would leave her child parentless to go to war? This poor kid has bigger problems than his mean teacher.

One who wants to be employed and was left without a father for her child. You DISGUST me. You are truly the poster shild for the new FR.

[Hunble]

You, as a teacher, made the wise choice. You have earned my respect.

Today, we need to work together and help all of the parties involved.

What I want to ask each and every one of them is rather simple:

How can I help?

[La Enchiladita]

This is a GOOD KID! He's got his priorities in order.

Maybe you need to read the article again.

[lepton]

Should one who was already a mother have enlisted? I don't know the mother's skill set and I refuse to judge her. Perhaps she looked at Army pay and benefits as providing a better life for her child than working checkout at K-Mart.

Being an SFC (E-7), she's likely been in the Army for a while, probably since around the time the father died.

[Hunble]

DITTO

[brazzaville]

Good afternoon.

Ideally the schools would have the common sense to know there is a difference between talking to one's parent in Iraq and yakking with one's peers.

Zero Tolerance doesn't allow for the use of common sense.

Michael Frazier

[Windcatcher]

I could not disagree more. Had the student reacted in this way merely at the verbal request to end the call (which in and of itself would have been an immoral request, as has been extensively discussed here), you might have a point, but such was not the case. The teacher physically tried to take the phone from the student when the student verbally refused. In other words, the teacher followed an inherently immoral request with physical coercion of said immoral request and precipitated the student's response. When people act in a blatantly immoral manner, authority or no authority, they should be opposed. Perhaps the student could have found a more sympathetic way of opposing the teacher, but I cannot fault his motivation in any way. The teacher should be upbraided up one side and down the other, and I see no difference between an adult telling her off (with profanity if need be) and this student doing it.

[alice_in_bubbaland]

The problem is that there are a lot of jackasses running Public School Systems. Zero tolerance is a joke! My son's school has one of the biggest idiot's in the State running his school! Real Gestapo (sp?)! Only 6 more weeks and he graduates! Hooray! Last kid too!

[leadpenny]

But has anyone asked what kind of "mother" would leave her child parentless to go to war?

That's a clueless awarding winning post. Congratulations.

[leadpenny]

In case you didn't notice, murdocj has a website.

[murdocj]

I think the rule about no cell phones is a sensible one. And the student broke it. The teacher was enforcing a sensible rule, not making "an inherently immoral request".

I know not everyone (and probably very few on FR) will agree with me.

Both sides should have acted better.

[kidd]

from the article:

The 10-day suspension was issued because Kevin Francois was "defiant and disorderly" and was imposed in lieu of an arrest

This is complete BS.

The student was assaulted by the teacher in her attempt to grab his phone. The Principal has issued this suspension to scare the student; to keep the student from pressing charges against the teacher.

IOW: If the student presses charges, there is an implied threat that the school will turn this into a legal matter.

Sorry, I disagree strongly with the school on this, and it has nothing to do with who was on the other end of the phone. The appropriate action by the teacher would have been to discipline the student for unauthorized use of his phone and disobedience AND NOTHING ELSE. Instead the teacher decided to get physical. Big mistake on the teacher's part.

[Abathar]

A statement was emailed to me from the superintendent, Dr. John Phillips.


MEDIA RELEASE FROM DR. JOHN A. PHILLIPS, JR.,
SUPERINTENDENT
MUSCOGEE COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT


The Muscogee County School District has over 3700 military students enrolled. We have a long and strong relationship with Ft. Benning. Spencer High School has the greatest number of military students of any of our schools. All of our counselors have received training in supporting students whose parents have been deployed, and military personnel serve as Partners in Education in over half of our schools.

When the Spencer teacher approached the young man about using a cell phone on campus, contrary to Board of Education policy which is designed to preserve instructional time and decorum in our schools, the young man did not tell the teacher he was speaking to his mother in Iraq. He indicated he would not comply with a request to turn over his cell phone and used profanity. The teacher escorted the young man to the office, where assistant principals tried to get him to calm himself and to cease the use of profanity. It was only at this point that administrators learned he was talking to his mother in Iraq.

The Guidance Department at Spencer High School has arranged for a number of students to receive calls from parents who are deployed. They would have been happy to do this for this young man. The issue here was not so much the use of the cell phone as it was the choices the young man made in handling the situation. We are empathetic to all students whose parents serve in the armed forces; we do have behavior standards which we uphold.

The school has been in touch with personnel from Ft. Benning. We are endeavoring to have the young man readmitted after a three day suspension, which was the first option for him. It was only after greater defiance and profanity that the suspension was extended. We will ask that the student and his guardian sign a behavior contract indicating that he will comply with the same standards of behavior which apply to all of our students. We will continue to be sensitive to the needs of students whose parents serve our country.


06 May 2005

[Nov3]

You are one sick puppy. Truly you embody what is wrong with FR now

[HAL9000]

The kid deserves a suspension.

The teacher and principal are idiots for cutting off that call. They deserve to be suspended because of their general stupidity.