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School Board Meeting R Frazier
School Board Meeting R Frazier
Rebecca Frazier
EDU 210
3 December 2016
SCHOOL BOARD MEETING 2
The school board meeting that I watched was held on Thursday, November 10, 2016. Dr.
Linda Young, the president/District C representative, lead the meeting. Concerned individuals
who are part of the CCSD community, such as students, teachers, and parents, spoke about
various topics they have experienced or witnessed at their schools. They are letting their voices
be heard, in hopes of raising awareness of important issues, and creating change. By speaking
out to the board, all individuals were exercising their freedom of speech right, as stated in the
First Amendment of the Constitution. Issues such as school closures, zoning and the
accessibility to schools, school policies and neglect, and school expansion were discussed.
The first speaker that came up was Mike Tack, a sixth grade English teacher at John C.
Freemont Middle School. He discussed the issue of Freemonts potential school closure. This
potential closure was announced without input from the community or consideration of the
teacher program. A publication of the teacher program was provided to the school board, so that
the school could be better understood. Also, signed petitions from state holders to halt the plan
to close the school was provided. Concerns of equity are brought up, as well as zoning impacts.
Parents and community members are feeling excluded from this decision. Tack asks that the
board consider this issue, and to allow parents and everyone else affected into the conversation.
He asked that the notice be provided in mail, in both English and Spanish to the families
affected.
The issue of potentially closing this middle school was addressed in an appropriate, legal
way. Mr. Tack, a teacher, has the right to express his concerns about school related subjects as
long as the speech is not disruptive. His expression counts as protected speech because he is
speaking about matters of public concern. A matter of public concern includes comments on
SCHOOL BOARD MEETING 3
administrative or board action on general issues of management and policy (Underwood, J. &
Webb, L., 2006, p. 49). It is his right to express dissatisfaction, and request for consideration.
The second speaker was Sylvia Rodriguez, a former student at Freemont Middle School.
She explained that Freemont offered her support that her parents could not offer her. Freemont is
Students are given the help they need with their struggles. She discussed the kindness and
compassion that the staff have for all of its students. She said that getting rid of this school
would put students at a disadvantage because they would have to wake up earlier and travel
Sarah Day was the third speaker. She is majoring in Education at UNLV. She observed
at Freemont Middle School. Ms. Day explained that the staff make the school a second home for
their students. The accessibility of the school was discussed. Keeping the school open allows
for working parents to easily be involved because the school is so close to families homes. She
asked that they make the decision to try and save this school because it is the right thing to do.
The issue that Ms. Rodriguez and Ms. Day expressed, about zoning and the accessibility
to the school, could relate to affirmative action. Affirmative action is a strategy that involves
taking steps to promote diversity in schools (Underwood, J. & Webb, L., 2006, p. 188).
Especially with economic inequality among schools, race can correlate. Attendance zones may
be set, to maximize the likelihood of racial diversity (Underwood, J. & Webb, L., 2006, p.
189). Freemonts closure could be put into effect because of a desire to diversify the school,
The fourth speaker was Samuel Arosco, a parent of a child who attended Schoolfield
Middle School. His son had an accident at one of the school sites. A teacher refused his son the
right to use the restroom on multiple occasions. His son urinated in his pants because of this.
Mr. Arosco is disturbed and outraged at what his son had to go through. He has moved his
children out of that school district, to a school that has better policies. Similar cases are
happening in other schools throughout the country. He asks that parents and school board
What Mr. Aroscos child had experienced was child neglect. Child neglect is defined as
a failure to provide for a childs basic needs (Underwood, J. & Webb, L., 2006, p. 80). The
urge to use the restroom is a basic need that was denied to his son. As a result, his child urinated
in his pants, and most likely experienced feelings of extreme humiliation and trauma. It is a
teachers responsibility, while the teacher has students in their care, to make sure that a childs
needs are being met, whether those needs are physical, medical, educational, or emotional in
A teacher at Rancho High School, Robert Coles, spoke next. The main issue that he
discussed is that there are thousands of students who are taught in portable classrooms, including
his students. He said that there is a need to expand some facilities. He also pointed out that most
of the schools that have many portable classrooms are school that occupy mostly students of
color. He said that the portable classrooms currently need improvement, and are not equal in
quality to the classrooms located in the school. He asked that the issue of the portable
classrooms be addressed.
Mr. Cole brought up one possible solution to the issue of having too many portable
classrooms. He expressed that there is a need to expand the school. In some cases, the last
SCHOOL BOARD MEETING 5
clause of the Fifth Amendment becomes relevant, in order to do this. The state or school system
can try to gain private property for school purposes, exercising eminent domain. This power
may want to be exercised when a school district is trying to gain property to enlarge a school
if it has not been able to negotiate a voluntary purchase of the needed property (Underwood, J.
& Webb, L., 2006, p. 5). Gaining property to expand Mr. Coles school would eliminate the need
to have portable classrooms, which would create a better learning environment for students and a
References
SCHOOL BOARD MEETING 6
Underwood, J. & Webb, L. (2006). Legal Framework for the Public Schools. In D. Stollenwerk
(Ed.). School Law for Teachers. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.