It is truly a sad day when many have become so grossly complacent and gleeful when it comes to getting unjustly flogged. Students in these times do not seem to mind having many of their fundamental rights taken away, and only seem casually concerned about being treated as if they were pedophiles locked up in a maximum security prison. After all, this is what the modern high school has turned into; a super high security prison with education added on as an extra-special bonus.

The aim of this piece is more focused, however, on the recent decision by the school to stick its nose in activities students engage in outside of school. This school now has the power to penalize a student for doing something outside of school, whether it is in their home, at the local hang out, or what have you, which could result in the barring of a student from school activities and clubs. To an even greater extent, the Board of Education extended the rule to not only ban students from participation in various sports and activities, but also to impose a long term suspension on a student who is thought to be engaged in drug-related activities on or off school grounds. So it seems that the trap is perfectly set and students must now walk carefully or the mousetrap will swiftly catch them. Nowadays, the student is seen as the criminal, while the Board of Education acts as the Gestapo prepared to take care of any one who gets out of line.

The logic of such rules regarding participation in extracurricular activities is flawed in ways that ought to truly depress anyone who cares about their child. Perhaps the best way to illustrate my point is to present a scenario and information about the average high school student. Take the hypothetical situation of a student attending a party, which involves the consumption of alcohol by minors—a scene that has been an integral part of the high school experience since time immemorial. Let’s use the name “Jeremiah” to further develop this hypothetical situation; Jeremiah attends this party, unaware of the illegal acts going on, and some of his friends, lacking foresight, decide to take incriminating photos and post them on the social network facebook. While Jeremiah did not actually partake in any of these illegal acts, he does end up appearing in a number of photos with people who are. A few weeks later, the administration gets a hold of some of these pictures, one way or another, and sees that Jeremiah, typically thought to be a “good boy”, next to a crowd of people drinking alcoholic beverages. He is called into a meeting with the principal, the images are shown, and he is then barred from participating in the sports and activities which define his life. Such a situation is not far fetched, and one could make the assertion that many good-natured students could end up being unjustly penalized for an offense they never actually committed.

Now is that crucial time when parents and students need to wake up from their cozy slumber. It’s time to decriminalize the modern day student and treat the children of this generation with a bit more respect. Criminalization only leads to lunacy and major developmental problems that could potentially jeopardize a child’s future. None of the information presented in this piece should have made the reader feel warm and fuzzy inside. After reading this, it is my sincere hope that you are now out of the comatose state, which you have been in while this mess has unfolded. Join together and turn the focus of our schools back to proper education and development, not flagellation of innocent students.

—Steven P. Rodriguez

1. wise-bear liked this
2. optionshiftk posted this