Candidates for the Jefferson City School District Board of Education weighed in on discipline and behavior issues at Wednesday night's forum hosted by the News Tribune.
They also answered additional questions from the News Tribune about their views in interviews last week.
The News Tribune asked candidates about the district philosophy and handling of discipline, changes that could be made, and what the role of the school board and the parent is in discipline.
Discipline philosophy, strategy
At the forum, candidates were asked what the district's discipline philosophy should be and about their assessment of the district's handling of behavior.
Brad Bates said the district has struggled with addressing behavior for 15-20 years.
"There's two sides to the equation. On one side, if a child is not in a classroom, then they can't learn. The other side of that equation is if a child won't behave and won't calm down in a classroom, the other 19 kids won't learn either," he said.
The district should find ways to remove a student having a bad day and deal with them one-on-one to allow others to learn, Bates added.
Suzanne Luther said the discipline situation is improving. She said she has talked to parents and teachers, who are split on the issue. Some thought the discipline was harsh and unfair, and some thought that children were unable to learn because of disruptions.
"There are students that need immediate intervention but have a safe place to go with an adult that can help them work on self-control and that benefits the student and it benefits the classroom, it benefits the teacher," she said.
She said the district is working on those immediate needs with its current system, and she also thinks students are learning different coping mechanisms for dealing with strong emotions that can "alleviate discipline problems moving forward."
"I think the point is that we need both. We need those immediate interventions and we need that ongoing learning," she said.
Tapiwa "Felix" Madondo said consistency in consequences is key.
"This is where parents come in as well, to where, whatever the consequence is at school, it has to be followed up," he said at the forum.
Madondo said there have to be "real-world consequences" at home from parents when a child has a discipline problem at school.
"And talking to kids is also very important, I would say, just frequently. I mean, check in, sit down, 15-20 minutes, talk to your kid. What's going on? You'll kind of understand what's their world," Madondo said in an interview.
"I just hope schools get help, and help is going to have to come from parents taking responsibility and following up on consequences."
At the forum, Mike Harvey likened some students hopping on the bus to going to Miami on spring break.
"Those good kids up at school, not so good on the beach at Miami," he said.
Parents need to understand that if their children face discipline at school, they will be called in to discuss it.
"I think they need to be notified, and bring them in as part of the cure, not the problem, but part of the cure," he said. "Find out why the behavior's what it is, and work it out, make it work."
In an interview, Harvey said he didn't feel there was a serious behavior problem that was not being handled at the district.
Scott Hovis said at the forum that he grew up following the mantra that you treat people the way you want to be treated.
"It's (addressing behavior issues is) a work in progress. I would say that it is improving daily from my lens," Hovis said.
He said behavior has been a focal point of the board and superintendent over the last few years.
Many problems can be resolved with quality instruction and structure, he added.
"If we have that in the classroom, then the kids will be engaged with the teachers, engaged with what's going on, and then they might not be acting out," Hovis said at the forum.
Changes
In an interview, Bates said the district is paying more attention to disruptions and taking action quicker.
"I believe it's definitely getting better. We've made great strides over the past year, but I don't think we're where we want to be. We definitely have more ground to make up to make it a better place for teachers and our kids," Bates added in an interview.
Madondo said he'd like to see consistency in the district in terms of consequences, while still exercising discretion.
Harvey said he drove a school bus for a period of time.
"And needless to say there was a lot of behavior problems within that group of which there wasn't much I, as a driver, could do about it," he said. "But I've always felt that getting parents involved in behavior problems with children is an absolute must. I don't think that it can fall upon the faculty, staff or the system, the school system, to be solely involved in the discipline of a child."
Hovis said accountability should start at the top with the board holding the superintendent accountable.
Luther said the system that is in place currently is more effective on immediate disciplinary issues.
Discipline has always been a challenge for teachers, Luther said.
"I think there's also a disconnect from the academic training that we get as teachers regarding discipline and then the job itself," she said. Luther said she learned most of how to discipline from mentors she worked with, not in school.
Role of school board and parents
The News Tribune asked candidates what the role of the school board should be in the discipline system, along with the role of parents.
"The role of the school board of course is to evaluate and give direction to the superintendent, and the superintendent then gives direction to his administrative team to carry out the directive of the board, so in essence that does make the board involved in the disciplinary action, if we feel that that is becoming an issue that is really causing us problems and that we need to get a grip on," Bates said.
In a perfect world, Bates said, the school and parents would always be working together, but that's not the case.
"I do think parents need to be involved as much as they possibly can because often times a kid that's acting up may be doing so because of things that are happening at home, and if we can work together as a team to help our kids then it's only going to benefit them," he said.
Bates said it's important to limit behavioral disruptions to allow kids to learn and teachers to teach.
Luther said she didn't feel prepared to speak on the role of the school board and how it interacts with the role of the parent, though she said she would learn more in her intensive training as a new school board member if elected.
She said being open to input from the community is vital.
"We should have policies that are consistent and that should be enforced fairly and equally," Madondo said of the board.
"You have to make sure that your kids or your child takes accountability for their part, and that is the parent's job to make sure that they do that, and the parent should be held accountable as well," he said.
Parents should talk to their children about their expectations, he added.
Harvey said the board's responsibility is to enforce existing policies.
"A lot of policies are made over the years and are forgotten about -- seemed like a good idea at the time but then they're forgotten about," he said. "And I don't think that's appropriate. I think that it needs to be revisited constantly by the board to make sure that these are being enforced and used or rescinded."
He said parents need to help in reinforcing discipline.
Harvey said in his experience, parents led the way.
"You learned by your parents' example and how they taught you how to behave when you went to school. I think that's overlooked," he said.
Hovis said the school board should ensure the superintendent is doing the job he or she is paid to do.
"In my opinion, it's not our place to run the school. The job of a school board is to hire and fire the superintendent and make policies, and our job's to hold him accountable ... discipline is one of those things that's being held accountable," he said.
"Parenting is key, making sure that parents hold their kids accountable. They're going to do the right things in the classroom, acting and respecting teachers and administrators and respecting other students at school. So, it's a team effort."
Submitted photo Scott Hovis
Submitted photo Tapiwa "Felix" Madondo
Submitted photo Brad Bates
Submitted photo Mike Harvey