Pondering the Cleveland public school’s STUDENT CODE OF CONDUCT Handbook 2006-07

After downloading a copy of the CMSD Student Code of Conduct handbook, it became apparent that when students break the rules, the consequences are pretty much discretionary at best. It begs the question on whether a student will have to take responsibility for any bad choices they might make.

The CMSD Student Code of Conduct

In some cases if a student breaks the rules, it is the taxpayer who will suffer the consequences. Taxpayers should read the section entitled “Suspension and Expulsion from the School Bus”.

Specific violations are defined as Level 1 through 4 offenses, level 4 being the worst of the offences. In every instance where the corrective actions are defined, you can read that the student may be held responsible for his or her actions.

The Student Code of Conduct handbook lacks any real bite. It amounts to a subjective discretionary policy which can be viewed as nothing more than a book of idle threats.

Chapter 14, section F, concerns misbehavior on a school bus. What consequences do you think a student will face if his behavior warrants suspension or expulsion from the school bus? Will the student have to walk to school? Will the student’s parent(s) have to drive him to school? No, the taxpayer will pay the price by providing the student with RTA tickets. The student then becomes the RTA’s problem, compliments of the taxpayer.

In my blog entitled “Trying to make a horse drink in fantasy land”, I brought up that some Cleveland teachers have told me that there are consequences for them if they punish students for their bad behavior. These consequences also apply to principals. It is easy to blame the teachers and principals for a students poor choices leading to inappropriate behavior. Here is an excerpt from my blog:

“This blame is perpetuated in some cases by the Free Stamp City school administration itself. It is unfortunate that within the Free Stamp City school system, it is the teacher who is held responsible for the dysfunctional students’ choices not to learn. The teachers are doing their jobs, but these students and their parents are not doing theirs, yet the school administration holds the teachers responsible for the bad choices of these students and their dysfunctional parents.

In some cases if discipline is bad at a Free Stamp City school, or if a school has a high suspension rate, the school principal can be replaced for not keeping control. This is why at times a disruptive student will not be documented because a principal wants to show the administration that bad behavior is being controlled. A student being suspended does not look good to the administrators. It is easier to blame the teachers and principals for a student’s bad behavior rather that holding the student and their parents accountable for their actions. And these policies have been written by some of the highest paid school administrators in the country.”

I am not making this up folks. Several Cleveland teachers have personally confided this information to me. On the Cleveland.com forum where this blog is still posted, a Cleveland teacher responded in agreement. Here is what that teacher wrote:

“This part’s true. Yes, it's true in many schools. The fear that abounds about suspension numbers in many schools is palpable. It makes for an unmanageable environment in those schools.

What we need, like “Delta” [another blogger] has posted so many times, is to exclude the criminals from school. Students who assault others, bring weapons or drugs, or destroy property recklessly should be prosecuted, not merely suspended or allowed to return with a parent.”

After the Asa Coon shooting, Dr. Eugene Sanders has announced that millions of dollars will be spent to install airport like security in all Cleveland schools. Dr. Sanders has also stated that additional security staff will be hired to operate this equipment. Dr. Sanders has also announced that an outside consulting firm will be paid to review the CMSD’s current security policies. And do you know who will pay for this? The taxpayers of course.

From reading stories in the media about the Asa Coon incident, here is some of what was reported.

Asa Coon was suspended – he should not have been on school grounds.

Asa Coon walked into the school in the early afternoon, an odd time to be reporting to school – should not have the security guard stopped him and demanded a written excuse and/or sent him to the office?

Asa Coon did not appear to be wearing his proper school uniform and was carrying a backpack.

Asa Coon was recognized as a student by the security guard

The school security guard did not act on any of these red flags that Asa Coon was displaying. The guard missed any and all opportunities to do his job.

Security measures that were in place and laws on the books should have worked if they were enforced. But they were not enforced. What good is a policy or law that is not followed or enforced? Mayor Jackson said he would now make sure that current city laws are enforced. Kind of late for action don’t you think Mr. Mayor?

There is no need to spend millions on reinventing the wheel at taxpayer’s expense. I think what needs to be done is the taxpayers should get rid of the incompetent buffoon lawmakers and school administrators. It’s time that city and school leaders should be held accountable.

And as always, I anticipate that there will be those on the Cleveland.com education forum who respond to my post with their sociological theories on the troubled Cleveland students being the victims. They will write how “Myopic” I am. They will write that I am just “bitching” because I am an angry firefighter. I did finish my post on the Cleveland.com education forum these words:
As for being myopic, you folks are entitled to your opinions and I am free to disagree with your opinions. I do not have an understanding on what some believe are the so called “real and significant effects of social constructs" The writer chose not elaborate on them.

Others posting on this forum have stated that “society is culpable to the so called bad kids”; I personally do not believe that society is a single faceted entity; therefore I do not believe that society as a whole can be blamed for people choosing not to exercise their rights, and not living up to their presumed responsibilities to be productive citizens. And I know I am not alone in these beliefs.

But I do believe that there is a part of society can be culpable; that part of society which has written and supports the enabling policies currently in place. There are those members of society who believe that money should be continually spent for the sake of those citizens who choose to live without the reason or the need to be accountable to the rest of society; money spent to fund policies which enables them to live off the system without the fear of any consequences for making their bad choices, and with no real incentives to become a productive player in society.

And I wonder if those who disagree with holding the irresponsible accountable for their actions actually live in the city of Cleveland? How many teachers who post on this site standing up for the CMSD actually live in Cleveland and if they have children, send them to the Cleveland schools? I’d love to have those statistics.

And for the idea people who live outside Cleveland’s borders with all your ideas and theories; if you truly believe in what you say, you should be the first to open your city borders and let the troubled people of Cleveland in live in your cities - free of charge. You should be the first to allow the troubled people of Cleveland to use your schools - free of charge. You along with all the other tax paying citizens of your cities should pick up the tab for the any inappropriate behavior of the troubled people of Cleveland.

It’s so easy to have ideas and answers when living safely outside of city limits. I hope the do-gooder cities are the first to open their doors to regionalism.

But then again, this is Free Stamp City.

A follow up to my last blog concerning solutions

A follow up to my last blog concerning solutions

After posting my request for solutions blog, on the www.cleveland.com education forum, it was pointed out to me by a blogger that education is not a privilege, but a right.

Though I could find nothing in the constitution that states education is a right, I decided to reply to this teacher.

Based on the teacher’s premise that education is a right, I realized the city has fulfilled its obligation to provide the opportunity for the students to exercise their rights with schools and teachers. But the real question is do the students have to exercise their right to an education?

As I said before, education is there for the taking. The teachers are willing. The schools are not broken. By law, the students are brought to the water trough, but they cannot be made to drink. It is no one's fault other than that of the “irresponsible” themselves that they choose not to exercise their right to an education and it’s no one else’s job to have to take responsibility for them. No one can or should force another to exercise their rights.

This is a free country. And people are free not to exercise their rights. People have the right to vote. But they don’t have to if they choose not to. They can stay at home and remain apathetic to the politics of this nation. People can exercise their right to practice the religion of choice. But they don’t have to. They can just stay home and watch the football game instead. People have the right to bear arms. But they can choose not to own a firearm.

I found a site of interest called “The US constitution online”
Click Here

Here are some excerpts from that site concerning a person's rights and responsibilities.

From The US constitution online:

“With all these rights listed and guaranteed by the Constitution, many believe that the Constitution must impose a great number of responsibilities upon the individual as well. This is not the case.

No where will you find an explicit list of responsibilities that the Constitution imposes.

However, the Constitution assumes some civil duties, and these are inherent in the Constitution.
For example, the Constitution presumes lawfulness. It is a responsibility, then, to obey the law. For those who do not, there are protections, but the presumption of lawfulness is apparent.

The Constitution sets rules for a conviction for treason against the United States. This presumes loyalty to the United States. It is a responsibility, then, to be loyal to the United States

The Constitution presumes juries, particularly an impartial one. It is a responsibility, then, to serve as an impartial juror when called.

The Constitution presumes an army and a navy, and provides the Congress with the power to raise armies. Service during war is also mentioned. It is a responsibility, then, to serve in the armed forces when called.

The Constitution is peppered with amendments that expanded the right to vote - many people, over several centuries, have worked hard to bring the vote to as many people as possible. With few exceptions, all persons, 18 or older, can vote in any public election. It is a responsibility, then, to vote.”

From this it can also be surmised that with the right of education comes the responsibility to attend, and to learn. If the irresponsible student's only purpose is to be to disruptive in school, preventing those responsible students from exercising their right to an education; and their irresponsible parents do not care nor take responsibility for their children's inappropriate behaviors, then the irresponsible students should be expelled as they have chosen to forfeit their rights while preventing others from being able to exercise their rights. The luxuries their families have; those that have been paid for by the working taxpayer, should be taken away because they choose not to be responsible.

Requests for solutions

Requests for solutions

I putter around on the website www.Cleveland.com in their education forum. There is a lot of bickering that goes on in this forum. I have posted my blogs in the forum and have received some interesting responses. Occasionally a teacher will ask for suggestions on how to fix the broken schools. I guess they are writing from the premise that if a person has a complaint, they should offer a solution.

What I find in a lot of cases is that if a solution means facing the truth, those demanding solutions will not accept it. One person’s truth may not be the same for another. It’s all about perception.

Being a citizen of Cleveland bound by its residency rules, I have become passionate about issues that directly concern my family. I want the best for my children and will fight to make sure they get it.

Recently, a teacher new to posting on the education forum asked the “complainers” for their suggestions and solutions. She later mentioned that she taught 25 years in a parochial school. If I had to make an educated guess, I believe that her children, if she does have any, were spared from the Cleveland school system. Here is my response to her inquiry:

Parochial Teacher questions others in this forum “how to fix the schools”. She asks for suggestions. She asks how others would fix things. My response below:

The Cleveland school system was once a good school system. I am a graduate of the Cleveland school system.

In 1979, desegregation came to town. It did not work. It has recently been ruled unconstitutional by this nation’s highest court. Forced busing was the final coffin nail to the once credible Cleveland school system.

Living in this city, I have watched over the years as the inappropriate behaviors of the irresponsible have been rewarded with luxuries provided at the expense of the taxpayer. I have watched as governmental policies enable the dysfunctional lifestyles. As a testament, where else can you openly see direct TV dish’s on government assisted housing complexes? The needy don’t have to look for work; it would take time away from those good shows on cable.

Personally, I don’t believe the Cleveland schools themselves are broken. Rather, society along with the governmental incompetence and mismanagement is what I see is broken in Cleveland. I believe that the leaders of Cleveland and its school system live in denial of these problems. They go out of their way to reinvent the wheel to accommodate the irresponsible citizens with their inappropriate behaviors. They change proven school structures of old and experiment with things like K through 8 schools, uniforms, single gender schools, magnet schools. They hope that this reinvention of the wheel will solve the problems while still allowing the irresponsible to continue their lifestyles. Yet for some reason, education worked when I was in school. There were no uniforms, no uniform vouchers, and no free lunches. Parents were active with their children and with their schools. Responsibility was actually once the norm. Do you believe it’s the responsibility of the property tax owners to sustain the idle and irresponsible?

Nothing can be fixed as long as city and school leaders continue to live in denial of the irresponsibility that they turn a blind eye to. How many more high paid school officials will be appointed to pilfer the taxpayer money while testing their new theories? Only 7% of Cleveland schools are rated effective by the State of Ohio, yet the new CEO celebrated with cheerleaders on the steps of city hall.

Education is there for the taking. The teachers are willing. But if a student chooses not to learn, there is nothing that can be done. If a parent does not take responsibility for their children, there is nothing that can be done. Absolutely nothing can be done as long as our country continues to fuel the enabling policies in place to reward irresponsible behavior with “free” this and “free” that. What about the rights of the student who wants to learn but can’t because he is lost in the sea of the irresponsible?

Let’s examine the so called leadership of the city and its schools. Does the current school CEO live in Cleveland? No, he lives in Bratenahl. Did the prior school CEO pay property taxes to help the schools? No, she lived in a tax abated condo. Did the last mayor send her children to the Cleveland schools? No, they were allowed to attend the Suburban schools up the street. Leadership begins with setting the example.

These so called leaders were nothing more than idea people, implementing their theories and programs while exempting themselves from having to participate.

Do you believe it is morally right to only tax those working citizens who own property?
The Ohio Supreme court believes that the current method of funding schools is unconstitutional. In fact they have made this ruling more than once.

Suggestions you ask? How about first having the Cleveland teachers live in the city, (a residency requirement like all other city workers), How about the Cleveland teachers sending their children to the school system in which they work. The teachers would then have a vested interest in solving the problems of education in this city by becoming part of the solution.

The school CEO should be required to live in the city that fills his wallet. Or is this city not good enough for him?

Do these suggestions sound rational? Do you have any ideas on how a working taxpayer can get these changes to happen?

You fix the problems by stopping the rewards. You fix the problems by holding the irresponsible accountable. You fix the problems by voting out the incompetence now in office in this city, county and state.

Until accountability and responsibility are restored, if ever, then yes, shut the schools down and hold those irresponsible accountable. Education is a privilege.