Changes to Parent's and Coaches Handbook Spurs Lengthy Discussion at Neillsville School Board Meeting
Wednesday, June 19th, 2013 -- 8:48 AM
-Concern about changes in the Parent?s and Coaches Handbook dominated a large portion of the evening at the Neillsville School Board Meeting.A revised section in the handbook states that if a student is charged with a felony they are suspended from playing in any athletic competitions. They can still practice, but they can?t play in the games. Subsequently, if they are convicted of the charge, they are then suspended for a year.
A parent in attendance at the meeting felt that the clause was unfair, especially if a child hadn?t been convicted yet, just charged with the felony. This brought about a lengthy discussion of ?innocent until proven guilty? and the definition of ?probable cause.?
The board stood by the wording saying that even if they're not convicted, a felony charge is very serious. Plus, if the student is found innocent or the charges are dropped, they can immediately begin to play again. There are appeals methods they can use as well. The board also mentioned that if the incident occurs off of school grounds it makes it harder to investigate.
The parent, and a teacher in attendance, both felt that the board should look at each incident case-by-case as some students may be an ?A? student, but simply make one bad decision. They also felt that if a student makes efforts to improve themselves, they shouldn?t be judged too harshly. There was also a discussion on expanding that punishment for other extra-curricular activities like class trips or prom.
In the end, the changes were approved and the wording was left as is.
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