On The Front Lines
Parent Teacher Association Groups Join the Rutherford Institute in Demanding That Schools Notify Parents of Student Discipline
FAIRFAX COUNTY, Va. -- Following The Rutherford Institute's lead, the Fairfax County Council of Parent Teacher Associations (FCCPTA) has passed a resolution calling upon administrators to notify parents before questioning their children for alleged disciplinary infractions. To facilitate this process, The Institute has made a form letter available to parents, which they can use to demand notification in these circumstances. The Rutherford Institute and a community-based parents' group, Fairfax Zero Tolerance Reform, have led the charge for comprehensive reform to the School Board's policies in the wake of the suicides of two Fairfax students, Nick Stuban and Josh Anderson. Both students were undergoing school discipline around the times of their deaths.
A copy of the Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) parent form letter and The Rutherford Institute's letter demanding disciplinary reform are available here and here.
"Protecting the constitutional rights of parents and students in disciplinary hearings is paramount," said John W. Whitehead, president of The Rutherford Institute. "This is a step in the right direction."
At a recent press conference, Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent Jack Dale proposed that the administration heed public demands and make a number of critical changes to the School Board's disciplinary policies. The proposed changes include recording disciplinary hearings, speeding up the appeals process and giving school principals more discretion in handling cases where students bring their own prescription medications to school.
Even as Dr. Dale's press conference was unfolding, an attorney for The Rutherford Institute was participating in a task force meeting called by Del. Kaye Kory (D-Fairfax) to address multiple deficiencies in state-wide school disciplinary procedures. Later this year, Institute attorneys will propose language for new Virginia legislation addressing these deficiencies, including the need for earlier parental notification. The Rutherford Institute plans to collaborate with other organizations represented at the meeting, including The Advancement Project, Just Children and Voices For Children.
Earlier this year, Delegate Kory's bill mandating that parents be notified when their children commit serious policy violations was defeated by the Virginia Senate in a 28-12 vote. Lobbying organizations for school administrators, including the Virginia Association of School Superintendents and the Virginia School Board Association, vehemently opposed the measure and testified against it in Committee hearings. The Rutherford Institute hopes to tighten the wording of the legislation to ensure its passage by the 2012 General Assembly.
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