Posted on 05/18/2005 7:39:49 AM PDT by Taft in '52
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ANOTHER GEORGIA PUBLIC SCHOOL STORY
“Two seniors at Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. High School (in DeKalb, Georgia) will miss their baccalaureate--but make their graduation--after a stink that started over a cake knife. Because of the school's zero tolerance policy on weapons, Ashley Pickens and Candace Grier, both honor students, were suspended from school for 10 days and told they would not be allowed to attend their baccalaureate ceremonies.
“The DeKalb school superintendent upheld that punishment but decided to allow the girls to walk with their classmates during graduation.
“The trouble started when the girls brought a cake to school and looked for a knife to cut it. They say they found a butter-type knife in the school's band room and tried to return it, but the door had since been locked. One of the girls put the knife in her book bag. Then a teacher saw it.
“‘He said it really didn't matter [that it was used for a cake],’ Pickens said. ‘[He said] it's a knife on school grounds, and you have to be written up for it--you ought to be glad we didn't have you arrested.’”
- WSB-TV in Atlanta, 5/14/05 [http://www.wsbtv.com/news/4489421/detail.html]
BRUSHFIRE ALERT: Wendy Pickens, Ashley’s mom, told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution [http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/dekalb/0505/15suspend.html] that the knife was so dull, it would barely cut paper.
Garry McGiboney, a school district deputy superintendent, defended the school’s decision by saying, “We tell seniors repeatedly this is not the time to show poor judgment.”
That’s right. Poor judgment is something to be left to professionals...like deputy superintendents! Talk about a “Common Sense Free Zone.”
The AJC reports that there is still a chance the girls will be charged criminally...and the case has been turned over to the DeKalb County police. In the meantime, a school tribunal will hear evidence in the matter TODAY to determine if the 10-day suspension should be upheld.
You know the drill. The principal’s name is Sylvester Nelloms. His phone number is (678) 874-5402 and his email address is SYLVESTOR_NELLOMS@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us
By the way, I called the school myself this morning to verify the story and see if the tribunal was still scheduled for today. The lady who answered the phone...hung up on me. So don’t be surprised if your call isn’t exactly warmly received.
Too bad our esteemed "leaders" are incapable of distinguishing between a tool and a weapon, or a perp and a citizen. This truely stupid and dangerous trend MUST be reversed!!
If the girls found the knife in the band hall, it probably belonged to the band director to eat his lunch. Anyone calling should ask if the band director got fired and if there are any knives in the teachers' lounge as well.
What happened to using COMMON SENSE. Schools sometimes go over board. Granted safety comes first. Schools are so caught up on being politically correct and kids are not taught any common sense.
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