Richard said:
Yes, but I was more concerned with the principal's remarks. She had led the school board in a drive to prohibit any student from bringing 'nationalistic' property onto school grounds. That decision was rescinded quickly after parent protestations. And the suspensions extended to all students involved.
As the son of a school administrator (teacher through principal through superintendent), I wholeheartedly agree. Sometimes folks overreact.
Sometimes it's hard to keep your head. My father told me of one case.
Girl has been antagonized by Guy for ... ever. They are both seniors.
On the day in question, she is sitting in the senior lounge. He's flicking bits of paper into her hair from across the room. She gets fed up, goes over, and dumps a 1/2 pint of milk over his head.
He then buys 2x 1/2 pint of milk and lots of cookies. He eats all of the above, and then forces himself to vomit it back into the container. He later dumps the vomitus over her head.
(I'm a hockey fan, so I'm thinking 2 minutes for roughing to her and 5 minutes for fighting to him)
My father gives her a 2 or 3-day in-school suspension and him a 5-day out of school suspension.
Guy is a senior baseball player. Guy's father demands that he be allowed to play baseball or he won't be seen by scouts.
Girl's father (or both parents, can't remember) are psychiatrists. They get Famous Local Citizen (a friend of the family) involved. Suddenly my father gets calls from school board members demanding to expel him. My father spends his evenings for a week talking board members down from their emotional state.
At the next school board meeting, both families make presentations in closed session. Girl's family wants Guy expelled - including testimony to the damage to her self-esteem. My father refuses to change the punishment, and the school board has to be told by their attorney that under state law the Superintendent makes decisions on student punishment - not the school board. Guy's father wants suspension revoked so he can play baseball.
Guy's family eventually files a suit to have the suspension reversed. I believe they got laughed out of Administrative Court.
A school administrator's job is tough. Usually, it's the parents that are MOST of the problem.
