More discussion of “hate in Saranac Lake”

We’ve had a good discussion here of the terrible case of bullying in Saranac Lake that was apparently sparked in part by a 12-year-old girl’s skin color.

In June, the middle school student’s alleged attackers used her antiperspirant stick to write a racial slur — including the N-word — on the middle school wall.  It wasn’t cleaned off for nearly a week.

As part of the discussion, long-time school board member Tracey Schrader (full disclosure, also a long-time friend) wrote the following.

As I read Brian’s article I couldn’t help but feel disappointed.

One would hope that one comment by Mr. Goldman wouldn’t be viewed as the “sum” of what his total message was.

Ms. Schrader is referring to a quote from the Plattsburgh Press-Republican in which Superintendent Gerald Goldman said administrators have “got to become a little more cognizant of what that culture [outside the classroom] is going to look like.”

Her post continues:

We will be doing more than “reviewing policy” and to think otherwise is a slap in the face to the dedicated staff who work hard at providing a safe learning environment for ALL of our children.

The school is often serving as “surrogate” parents to many children who aren’t receiving parenting at home.

I could share instances where parents refuse to allow counseling for their child of which the school will provide…because the parent thinks the school is quote “being ridiculous” or “it’s overkill….my kid is a good kid”.

I am the parent of a 15 year old boy who was also bullied in middle school. I immediately reported the incident to the Dean of Students and the child in question was suspended for one week.

The Dean was very clear to my son about reporting any further problems and asked other children who were witnesses to provide him with details. The issue was dealt with and I was happy with the outcome.

My son is now entering the 10th grade and after 10 years of being a very involved parent (in the classroom) I can honestly say that our school would not intentionally turn a blind eye to racism, bullying of any kind.

I will make this clear….I am not saying our district should not take responsibility for this disgusting incident and work even harder to promote acceptance and re-evaluate some of the programs we have in place…however our district is only a piece of the problem.

Our community is outraged (and rightly so!) but we ALL need to look in the mirror and ask ourselves if we as community members aren’t also part of the problem. The school can’t parent alone. Thank you for your time.

Ms. Schrader  makes some good points here — and also some points that I disagree with pretty vehemently.

Let me discuss them in order and then I’ll welcome your comments and thoughts.

First, in my original blog post I pretty much reach the same conclusion:  there needs to be a community-wide response to this ugly incident.

I also express deep fondness and respect for the district staff who have helped to educate my son Nicholas.

And I quoted at length the district’s letter about its planned response to the situation — including a link to the full letter.

But it strikes me that part of our community response to this incident needs to be some aggressive bird-dogging of district administrators and board members.

We need to make sure that they are investigating this case thoroughly and holding the proper people accountable.

Frankly, some credibility rebuilding needs to be done here — and fast.

And, yes, in my opinion the tone of some of Mr. Goldman’s comments haven’t been particularly helpful in that process.

Nor, in my opinion, is it helpful to suggest that demanding full accountability represents a slap in the face to our teachers.

Something went terribly wrong here and what we need now are facts.  Who knew about this bullying and when?  Did those staff-members follow district procedures put in place to protect this child?

If not, why not?  And what will be done about it?

Furthermore, we need a clear signal that the district will embrace a zero-tolerance policy toward harassment, bullying and racism.

It’s troubling, for example, that Ms. Schrader suggests that some parents have been allowed to refuse counseling for their children following incidents of this kind.

Have they also been informed that children who threaten or intimidate other children won’t be welcome back in our school without proper intervention?

I’ll close with a suggestion.  It strikes me that perhaps the best way forward here is for someone from outside the district to conduct this investigation and review.

An independent set of eyes may see this problem — and possible solutions — more clearly.