Jon N (will this be the last straw?)

[cmoneyr]

This thread has taken a turn towards WTF.

 

[alaskaguy]

Roosevelt School Board Member vs. Student; Who is at Fault?

I don't even live in Iowa but I found the following article in the Des Moines Register to be thought provoking..............

A Des Moines mother says she is “mortified†by a school board member’s letter to her son that challenges the young athlete to work hard but also contains a slang reference to a sex act.

Craig Richman, 16, a sophomore wrestler at Roosevelt High School, wrote an e-mail to school board members last week that voiced his frustration with the state’s “no pass, no play†rule, which benches athletes whose grades slip.

Richman blamed his academic struggles on advanced math classes. He said it was unfair that he should be required to sit out for six weeks for “challenging myself†and added that he is retaking the algebra class that gave him trouble.

Board member Jonathan ********, one of three board members to respond to Richman, said Monday that he thought the teen needed some “tough love.â€

His e-mail told Richman: “Suck it up, man. Hit the books. Work out, and stay in shape, and don’t make the same mistake ever again.â€

Richman’s parents feel Narcisse’s 11-paragraph e-mail was unnecessarily harsh. But they are more upset with a story ******** shared with the teen about an athlete who hadn’t focused enough on his academics and was last seen at a convenience store “asking customers for money for wine and offering (oral sex) for money.â€

Kim Richman, Craig’s mother, said the e-mail was offensive and demeaning.

Now read the kids email and the response from ******** and judge who should shoulder the blame over this incident.

Link:
Narcisse e-mail to student shocks parents, dismays board | DesMoinesRegister.com | The Des Moines Register

 

[brianhos]

Re: Roosevelt School Board Member vs. Student; Who is at Fault?

we discussed this a few days ago... I think Jon had the right message there. And the tone was exactly what it needed to be. And come on, it is not like the kid had never heard that before, I mean he is older than 10.

 

[superdorf]

Re: Roosevelt School Board Member vs. Student; Who is at Fault?

we discussed this a few days ago... I think Jon had the right message there. And the tone was exactly what it needed to be. And come on, it is not like the kid had never heard that before, I mean he is older than 10.

So if it was your kid you wouldn't have a problem with it?

He is a school board member... If a teacher, principal, or administrator said or wrote the same thing they would be sanctioned or possibly fired by DMPS.

EDIT: I realize that you don't want you kid in this situation in the first place... The parents should help the kid NOT fail... doesn't change the fact that Jon N has no common decency.

 

[whirlybirds]

i think he went to far with the way he wrote it, but this kid has heard worse in a public school. some kids just need a reality check to pull their heads out of their (cough cough)

 

[cyfan15]

Who cares if the kid fails? The important thing is that he doesn't have to read the term "blow job" in an email. That's the kind of thing that could really affect his life negatively.

 

[superdorf]

Well... Jon just chimed in on DMregister.com on the article Alaskaguy linked:

Which kids are good and which kids are bad? Are the good kids the ones who have parents to buy or bully their way out of trouble? Are the bad kids the ones that have no one to fight for them? The truth is most kids are shaped by the adults around them. What those adults allow them to do and what they require of them. Craig is unique but he is not special. The rules apply to him as they do every student. What's equally amazing though is the same board and superintendent that sympathize with Craig enough to pursue changing the law to allow him to wrestle despite flunking are the same people that have not sought to change the law allowing a violent, habitual, pedophile back into our schools while not even warning parents. But let's be honest, this is not about any term used it is about the desire to remove me from the board, criticize me or shut me up. Well, I've said it before. Prove me wrong, that I've made things up and I'll resign. I wish my fellow board members would do the same.

Here is the thing... Jon is missing the point and skirting the fact that he made an inappropriate sexual remark in a message to a STUDENT.

 

[isufbcurt]

Who cares if the kid fails? The important thing is that he doesn't have to read the term "blow job" in an email. That's the kind of thing that could really affect his life negatively.

I am 29 and I am still waiting for the above referenced term to negatively affect me, always been a positive term for me. :wink:

 

[cycloneML]

what was the name of the convenience store - was it Kum N Go?

 

[Cyclone62]

There is one thing that I want an answer to. I refers to the word bolded below.

Oh DEAR GOD!

How stupid are some of the people here?

The kid took an ADVANCED math course as a freshman. I sincerely doubt he's in danger of falling all the way to prostituting himself at a gas station. I would rather have my kid challenge himself/herself at a higher level and fail, than coast through on classes that don't challenge and perhaps don't prepare. A little bit of a mixed message when you push them to reach the stars, yet let them fall all the way back to earth. No credit or incentive to challenge himself? That's somewhat of the message I'm getting from this and what people here are saying. "Can't hack the challenging courses, coast on the gimmes".

And the overall issue isn't so much what his point was, but how he delivered it.

Perhaps the reason some are ok with it is because they are a little too much like JN.

Not to mention the fact that a few have already taken the liberty to decide the tone and content of the students email. That ******** just threw the kids rhetoric back in his face. Has anyone seen the kid's email? At least he should get some credit for addressing his issue in proper channels as well as taking it upon himself and not pawning if off on mommy and daddy (as I'm sure many here were well versed at doing).

If he passed the course below at an advanced pace with no problem, then why should him NOT passing the NEXT advanced course in line not be deserving of punishment? Math is one of the most cumulative subjects out there IMO. You need the previous one to learn the next. He passed the prerequisite, so why shouldn't be be punished for failing the next course? It's not like he jumped from Algebra I to Calculus.

 

[cybsball20]

I am 29 and I am still waiting for the above referenced term to negatively affect me, always been a positive term for me. :wink:

He wasn't talking about receiving...

 

[cycloneML]

He wasn't talking about receiving...

neither was Curt:wink:

 

[whirlybirds]

what was the name of the convenience store - was it Kum N Go?

probably the Git N Go near the Drake campus

 

[cycloneML]

probably the Git N Go near the Drake campus

Squirt N Split?

 

[isuchicago]

the real issue is his homophobic attitude.. shame on jon for trying to embarrass anyone involved in a consentual gas station bj

 

[temperflare]

Question: Why is Jon N. even having a discussion with this kid? In my personal opinion, he should have addressed this issue with his parents (i.e. (Mr. and Mrs. Smith, your son recently wrote a letter in protest to the rules set fourth... blah blah blah...etc.").

I would have given the student some kudos for his initiative, but then simply shot him down. You don't need an example pertaining to oral sex to get your point across.

 

[Cyclone62]

Question: Why is Jon N. even having a discussion with this kid? In my personal opinion, he should have addressed this issue with his parents (i.e. (Mr. and Mrs. Smith, your son recently wrote a letter in protest to the rules set fourth... blah blah blah...etc.").

I would have given the student some kudos for his initiative, but then simply shot him down. You don't need an example pertaining to oral sex to get your point across.

While it certainly may not have been "necessary," I think it may have been able to paint a clearer picture about the consequences of trying to get the rules bent your way than anything else.

Appropriate? not really.
Effective? most likely.

 

[cmoneyr]

While it certainly may not have been "necessary," I think it may have been able to paint a clearer picture about the consequences of trying to get the rules bent your way than anything else.

Appropriate? not really.
Effective? most likely.

Lol, effective but not appropriate? There are a lot of things that may be effective but not appropriate, you know why people don't do them? Because they're not appropriate.

 

[Tank]

Somehow, I don't think the no pass no play rule was put into play for situations involving this high school wrestler who's obviously got the smarts for taking an advance level course so early in his high school career.

So many times we here stories of kids who made an honest mistake by brining an orange peeler to school, yet they are treated like criminals because of the zero tollerance for weapons on school grounds.

This situation of the wrestler is just another example of why "zero tollerance" doesn't work.

Where do you draw the line though? In cases like this it has to be black and white, there can not be shades of gray for interpretation. In my opinion it is pretty simple, you don't pass, you don't play!