Parents demand action from Jefferson City School Board
With a superintendent on his way out, and a high school principal resigning in the first semester, the Jefferson City School Board Monday night investigated allegations of an out of control elementary school.
More than 50 parents and supporters from Moreau Heights Elementary demanded action.
They said things have become so out of control, teachers were bitten and kicked on a daily basis. One student apparently even threatened to kill a teacher.
All of this is reportedly happening while parents said teachers are not being backed by the administration.
To quote someone at Monday night’s meeting, “implementing a 30 day non-complaint policy is not leadership, it’s dictatorship.”
One thing was clear Monday; parents wanted accountability, and have no confidence in the current administrator to restore order.
One by one, parents and teachers went before the board and told horror stories of kids out of control and administrators turning a blind eye.
Former teachers and parents told the school board it’s time to lead, even some current teachers felt the need to speak out.
“I’m tired of teachers being intimidated,” said one East Elementary teacher. He has 28 students, and at Monday’s meeting, he was one of the dozens who told the board it’s time to back teachers restoring respect and accountability.
Some parents said they have taken their kids out of the district saying they’ll never return. They said Moreau Heights is just the tip of the ice berg.
One parent said, “I’ve talked with several teachers in the district and my heart goes out to them, they are great teachers.”
Another said, “I don’t think the teachers are getting any kind of backup. I think they’re not only being told to deal with it themselves, by they’re being told not to say anything to anybody.”
One West Elementary parent said her child was punched, choked, and thrown over a desk, and the other child got a slap on the wrist.
One consistent message parents were sending Monday night, “There has been a failure of leadership, and now there needs to be a change in leadership.”
