NEWARK – Revisions to the school system’s code of conduct and training related to explicit and implicit bias are expected to take place following an investigation by the Worcester County Board of Education into an incident at Snow Hill High School during the spring.
The school board last week announced that it had concluded its investigation into a March racially charged social media post at Snow Hill High School and administration’s reaction to the incident.
“The board has now concluded its internal review and thanks everyone affected by this incident for their patience in allowing the board time to meaningfully address this matter,” said Todd Ferrante, president of the board. “The board likewise thanks everyone it has heard from in this matter for their commitment to their children and the community to the Snow Hill High School and the entire school system.”
In early April, Superintendent Lou Taylor, Chief Safety and Operating Officer for Grades 9-12 Annette Wallace and Snow Hill High School Principal Kim Purvis joined a representative of the Tri-County Mediation Center at a church in Snow Hill for a discussion regarding a social media post made in March by members of the school’s baseball team. Purvis suspended three players — the one who created the post and the two who shared it — for a game. When Taylor became aware of the incident, however, he recommended the use of restorative circles, a technique that involves individuals talking openly and honestly together. Purvis subsequently felt she had to go that route rather than with the disciplinary action she’d initially handed the students.
“I was told and I quote ‘Dr. Purvis you don’t want something like this to tarnish your 30-year career,’” Purvis said at the church meeting. “That is what I was told. What do I do with that? I was also told ‘Dr. Purvis, I’ll be very honest with you. You can take this to the board but I don’t think the board will support you.’ So what decision was I to make?”
What in the world was Lou Taylor thinking? Restorative Circles? What is that crap? When you punish a kid for something like this, you drop the hammer and you don’t look back, else they don’t learn a thing. I would have personally done a 3 day suspension from school, and removed them from the team. Then again, I’m an old fart and the concept of punishing a child (which actually had a punishment rather than a feel good, peace, love and pukka beads talk) is lost on schools anymore.