FHSD Code of Conduct is 'Too Long' Some Say

The list of "school rules" for elementary school students in the Francis Howell School District is contained in a 26-page Code of Conduct that also spells out the consequences for breaking the rules. 

The middle school and high school Codes of Conduct are 25 pages each. Some parents and school board members think that these codes are too long and too complicated to be effective. 

The Board of Education discussed the Code of Conduct (COC) for the 2011-12 school year during a meeting Thursday. The code is updated each year and must be approved by the board. This year, few things were proposed as changes. 

Parent Tom Klein said during the board meeting Thursday that he's concerned about the length and content the Code of Conduct. Klein said that the COC was too specific. Klein said the Constitution of the United States is just six pages, while the tax code is significantly longer.

“Which one has more loopholes?” he said.

Klein said the board needed to review the COC and go in a different direction. He said he read other codes and like them much better, especially Rockwood School District's.

Director Amy McEvoy read a passage concerning students taking illicit and illegal substances that named just about every thing imaginable. The passage she read was wordy and very thorough, but a challenge to read.

“That’s why parents don’t read it,” she said.

McEvoy said she understood the COC was just trying to cover all the bases, but wished parents and students had access to something in more plain speak.

“I wish there was some way we could have a condensed version,” she said.

Director Mark Lafata also wondered the code had to be so specific. He said when he was in school he didn’t have a code of conduct. When he got in trouble, he had to get a paddling. 

The FHSD does not allow corporal punishment and a proposed new section in the code of conduct makes that clear, stating a person employed by or volunteering for the district will not administer corporal punishment to a student attending district schools. 

Lafata said many of the things in the COC are unnecessary and could be made simpler.

“If it’s against the law, it’s against the code of conduct,” he said.

Board Treasurer Mike Hoehn wondered why there were multiple codes of conduct—elementary, middle school and high school kids have different codes. He was told by the administration that there were some things that weren’t appropriate for elementary kids—drugs use, for example. Also, punishment differs by age. A grade-school kid bring a knife to school in his lunch box may not know that it’s against the rules while a high school student certainly would.

Lafata said much of the current policy is too restrictive on parents. He said this year gave his son who is in high school an aspirin to take to school in case he got a headache. He said he gave his son a written note granting him permission to carry around the pills. Lafata said his son was told the he couldn’t do that and would have to bring a bottle to the school nurse and would have to get the pills from there—he couldn’t carry the aspirin around all day.

“It’s way too much control,” Lafata. “It’s taking away my rights as a parent to tell me [he] can’t carry a Tylenol in his pocket.”

Superintendent Pam Sloan said the rules are in place for safety. She said she has personally seen a student overdose after taking what they were told was aspirin from another student.

Board Director Cynthia Bice agreed. She said the district has to look out for all students and has to make sure everyone is safe. The district can’t let students carry around notes that could be forged or pills that aren’t what they claim to be.

After more than 30 minutes discussing the issue, the board agreed to move on. The administration will review the current proposed Code of Conduct and present a final version for the board to vote on at the June 2 meeting.

• School lunches are going up a nickel. A federal mandate says the district has to up the cost of lunch to keep receiving federal funding. The plan presented by Chief Financial Officer Kevin Supple has the District have a small raise every year for the next few years until the goal is met.
• The Board approved all purchases over $7,500.
• With a 6-1 vote, Lafata being the lone nay vote, the Board  approved the 2011-2012 FHESPA Salary Schedule and the agreements outlined in the FHESPA Closure Document.
• Members of the Board and Administration congratulated Francis Howell North and Francis Howell Central for earning A+ designation.