Teacher Discipline

A news story yesterday said that the Hillsborough School Board was meeting to discuss teacher misconduct. Today, someone has advice for them.

April 15, 2008 - Owen Lafave, former husband of Debra Lafave, said he has ideas he wants to share with the school board. Among them: Institute mandatory training for teachers and give mandatory jail time for those convicted as sex offenders.

Monday, he said that he is working with local legislators to push for mandatory minimum jail time "of at least a year," for people in positions of power such as teachers, priests and counselors convicted as sex offenders.

"You need to punish people accordingly," he said. "You need something to deter it from happening."

Female teachers should not be treated any differently than male teachers accused of misconduct, he said, and male students must be seen as victims and provided more help.

"It's more of a cultural thing," he said. "People just don't see these boys as victims. Psychologically, their development is impacted, even if it isn't manifested until later in life."

All teachers, but especially those in high school, should have the same mandatory training that guidance counselors and psychologists get to help them deal with compromising situations, he said. And, he said, district policy could also be more specific about defining harassment and penalties.

He filed for divorce from his wife after her arrest. He remarried and has two children. He thought his former wife should have gone to jail.
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TT - If you doubted for a minute that the school board meeting was anything but a publicity event, this article at the Tampa Tribune today makes it clear what it was.

April 15 - Board members raise questions about teacher hiring process

The paper reported that at the press conference Owen Lafave declined to take the microphone, but made plans to meet with the school board.

OOPS OUR TIME IS UP The meeting ended abruptly as Board members came to the end of the one-hour allotted time. Several wanted to continue the discussion on ethics training in the future.

And at least one Board member hoped the presence of six television cameras and 16 members of the media would shine a light on the good practices already going on in the district.

"I think it's a sign of society today, and unfortunately a sign of media and the tabloid approach that we've been taking," Lamb said, confessing at the beginning of the meeting that he didn't see the need for it.

TT - We still think the newspaper and the School Board should leave the solution to others more morally qualified. Entry - Entry

Why the media is as much of the problem as the school board. Entry - Entry - Entry