This news blog has been around for over six years now. I concentrate on providing straight news reporting because people need to know what local public institutions are up to, and I do the best I can, as one guy volunteering his time, to do just that.
But every now and then, I must call something as I see it. So, with some trepidation, I will lay out my views on one subject that has been on my mind for some time, and explain my take of how local officials are handling that issue. This is all about the national student walkout planned for 10am, Wednesday, March 14th.
This started as a way to honor the 17 students that lost their lives and honor their memories with a 17-minute walkout during the school day, one minute for each student that died in the Parkland, Florida shooting one month earlier.
Student walkouts are not a new thing, but they are rare in recent times. So, with this national walkout planned, what are local school officials planning to do in response to the situation?
Area school districts are addressing the walkouts in the following ways:
–Carmel school officials say students there may participate in the walkout with no repercussions.
–Westfield-Washington Schools plan an “awareness walk” during that time.
–Noblesville will allow students to walkout without discipline as long as students conduct themselves respectfully and in the spirit and intent of the activity. The schools will also offer other activities during that time.
–Hamilton Heights will allow a walkout demonstration, according to the superintendent. “We respect our constitutional rights including the right to peaceful assembly. Therefore, we are providing the opportunity for students who want to walk in solidarity and in silence during a non-instructional period under administrative supervision on Wednesday.”
So, as you can see, there are various responses to this national call for a walkout at 10am Wednesday, March 14th. So, what do our school officials say about our local Fishers-area, the Hamilton Southeastern School District?
Their response is quite different. A letter was sent to the entire community in recent days, signed by Superintendent Allen Bourff and HSE School Board President Matt Burke. In that letter, worries were raised about the walkout.
The walkout “raises concerns for schools trying to balance student safety and instruction while still supporting student expression” according to that letter. The missive also describes “substantial disruption to the learning environment” that would, they say, result from any walkout. There is also a reference to “preserve instruction time.”
There is a passage about the importance of the school district staying “politically neutral.”
After reviewing the e-mailed letter, I was saddened by the approach taken by our local school officials. This is a totally wrong way to go.
I have seen some comments on social media indicating the school officials are infringing on students’ first amendment rights. I do not agree with that. But I am troubled nonetheless with the tone of this letter.
Let me deal with some of the issues raised in that message.
First, the notion of student safety was argued. I have seen the schools manage events of much larger magnitude than this student walkout. I have every confidence that proper security could be arranged for students marching outside their school buildings for 17 minutes. I am puzzled that this is raised as an issue after 17 students were killed in a high school attack one month earlier.
Then there is the assertion that a walkout would disrupt the learning environment and cut into classroom instructional time. There are events going on at high schools all that time that are at least somewhat disruptive. I understand the concern about precious instructional time in the classroom, but high schools let students out of class on a regular basis for other educational opportunities, including participating in sporting events. I do not see how this 17-minute march has any significant impact on the classroom. I would argue the march itself has important educational value.
Then there is the reference to the school district remaining “politically neutral.” Is there another side when you are commemorating the deaths of 17 high school students? Is the school district taking sides when I do not see another side?
I have no idea how many students at HSE or Fishers High Schools plan to walk out. I have gathered enough information to determine there will be some sort of walkout at each school. It could be a small number of students or a large number, I have no idea at this time. But I would guess that students with differing political beliefs are prepared to walkout together.
I take no pleasure in being critical of our local school officials. I know most of them and have a high regard for the entire group. But Hamilton Southeastern, as a school district, is taking a position setting us apart from other nearby communities, and not in a good way. We are a high-performing school corporation, the data is clear on that. We need to start acting more like a high-performing school district at the top.
I do not believe we should set policy just because other school systems adopt them, but the letter about the March 14th walkout sets us apart from other area school systems and it does not put us in a positive light.
There is one way our local school officials could do the right thing. In the question and answer part of the Bourff & Burke letter, read the following passage:
“Administrators always talk to students who violate school policies, and administrators take into account extenuating circumstances before assigning consequences.”
Yes, leaving your assigned classroom and taking part in the March 14 walkout is a violation of school policies. It would be my hope that administrators will not discipline students who peacefully march in support of this movement and are not disruptive.
After all, people my age have let this generation down. These mass school shootings have been going on for years, most in affluent school districts, and the adults have done nothing of consequence to prevent them. I, for one, do not blame them for marching and walking-out. Let’s not discipline these students.
