Parents, Teachers, Government Leaders, and Community Advocates Speak Out In Henrico County For Students

by N. Lucas, M.S.Ed.
Guest Columnist EdNews.org

All of those that attended the last school board meeting of the year for Henrico County Public Schools were witnesses to a very heated and lengthy voicing of concerns regarding the safety of John Rolfe Middle School by parents, educators, residents, and other concerned citizens.

For over thirty minutes, parents, teachers, a war veteran, and community activists did not hesitate to communicate their concerns regarding the quality of leadership concerns and safety issues that presently exists at Rolfe. Speaker after speaker shared how they had not received the required support when attempting to contact school and central office administrators as they attempted to address unjustified and unexplained suspensions of their students. One parent implored the school board members to visit the school and “go past the front office” to speak to the students and educators in order to determine what is really going on at Rolfe in hopes that some action will be taken. She also added that the students will talk to them if they would listen.

Concerns were expressed regarding student safety not only while at school, but also in neighborhood bus stops. Another parent went on to share disheartening accounts of how their students were falsely accused, victims of a rush to judgment by administrators, unfairly punished, and how, after repeated attempts, they were unable to contact Mr. Andy Armstrong, principal of Rolfe; Mr. John Rokenbrod, Eighth Grade Assistant Principal; and Ms. Marilyn Royal, Director of Middle School to resolve their concerns due to unreturned calls and administrators being out of the office.

A community advocacy group, East End Communities United for Change, that was organized by Ms. Makon C. Fletcher, an East End school parent, served as one of the catalysts for organizing our parents, educators, and students to speak out about improving educational experiences, monitoring school safety, vocalizing concerns, encouraging accountability, and mobilizing our communities on behalf of our students and their families on the East End of Henrico, which has been perceived as a traditionally underserved area of the county.

The fire of community advocacy on behalf of the children was initially ignited last month, during a meeting that was held between the parents of Fairfield Middle School, Superintendent Fred Morton and his staff, Senator Donald McEachin, Fairfield District School Board Member, Lamont Bagby. and various other community leaders. The meeting served as a medium for Mr. Morton to share the plans for the renovation of Fairfield and to answer any questions that concerned citizens may have regarding the project and its funding.

While the meeting became intense at times, a great deal of information, perspectives, and ideas were shared. The parents and other meeting participants posed challenging questions for Mr. Morton and his staff. There was even a suggestion of building an entire new school as opposed to renovating a school that is outdated. Parents also inquired as to how security would be in place with Fairfield being an outside campus layout. Henrico County Public Schools have schedule another meeting to further address the concerns of the community for this week at Fairfield Middle School.

The parents and interested community members that have concerns regarding John Rolfe Middle School have been invited to join in these advocacy efforts. After hearing the concerns of the many speakers during the “Public Comment” section of the last school board meeting, data was shared regarding the increasing safety issues at Rolfe. Based on the 2007-2008 Virginia Department of Education’s Report Card, John Rolfe Middle School has experienced significant increases related to safety offenses. At times the rate of offenses has more than quadrupled as compared to the previous year, despite having the same 1,500 member student population. The Virginia Department of Education’s website reports that:

* Discipline offenses committed against staff members have more than tripled since the previous year. (from 8 to 18)

* Discipline offenses involving weapons have tripled from the previous year. (from 5 to 15)

* Discipline offenses committed against a person have increased nearly 100% since the previous year. (134 to 325)

* Discipline offenses related to behavior disruptions throughout the school have increased over 100% since the previous year. (6 to 466)

* Discipline offenses involving technology have increased 100% since the previous year. (0 to 14)

* School safety offenses have experienced significant increases in all eight reporting categories, excluding one, that are required by the Safe Schools Informational Resource (SSIR).

Based on the on this report, the 2007-2008 school year is the third year in which Rolfe Middle School has had a school improvement plan. The school continues to be accredited with warning.

In recent weeks, the Henrico Virginia Chapter of the NAACP, Senator-elect Donald McEachin, and The East End Communities for Change have expressed their support in
ensuring that effective discipline and security for all schools within Henrico County is a priority for the county's administration. Newly elected Henrico County School Board Member, John Montgomery, representing Varina, the district in which John Rolfe Middle School is located, who promoted school safety within his campaign, has also been observed visiting the school in recent weeks as requested by educators, residents, and parents during the last school board meeting.

These issues and many others like them, will continue to be confronted and addressed by an increasing number of concerned parents, educators, government officials, students, and community leaders in an effort to hold Henrico County Public Schools accountable and, more importantly, ensure that all students and educators are provided an education experience of excellence in an appropriate environment.

Published January 6, 2008

See prior commenatry:

Administrators in Henrico County Fail to Provide Safe Schools For Students and Educators

Sunday

January 6th, 2008

Kandise Lucas, Ph.D.

Columnist EdNews.org

Education News

Parents, Teachers, Government Leaders, and Community Advocates Speak Out In Henrico County For Students

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