ANADARKO SUPERINTENDENT RESPONDS TO INCIDENT INVOLVING JUNIOR HIGH STUDENTS
ANADARKO SUPERINTENDENT RESPONDS TO INCIDENT INVOLVING JUNIOR HIGH STUDENTS
ANADARKO, OKLA. (TUC) — The Superintendent for Anadarko Public Schools has released a statement regarding an incident that occurred on campus and was recorded on video involving several students who put another student in a trash can. According to the student’s mother, prior to what was captured on video, her son was also beaten, kicked, grabbed by the throat, and slapped.
The superintendent said the situation is currently being addressed internally and acknowledged that the behavior shown in the video was inappropriate. In his own words, the school had a responsibility to provide appropriate supervision, and in this instance, they did not meet that responsibility. Since these are junior high students, the district cannot publicly discuss individual disciplinary actions involving the juveniles.
However, that being said, juveniles of junior high age, in our opinion, should not have to be “hand-held” to know right from wrong. Yes, proper adult supervision absolutely matters, and the superintendent has acknowledged that the students were not adequately supervised. But there also comes a point where students have to be held accountable for their own actions.
At that age, you know that putting your hands on another student is wrong. You know that throwing another student into a trash can is wrong. And you know when you’re humiliating or hurting someone else.
We truly hope this isn’t a “slap on the wrist” situation. We also sincerely hope law enforcement was notified, because according to the student’s mother, this went beyond just putting him in a trash can. She alleges that her son was beaten, kicked, grabbed by the throat, and slapped. If that is what happened, then in our opinion, this is much more serious than something that should only be handled through school discipline.
And to be clear, we don’t know what is happening behind the scenes, what disciplinary action is being taken, or whether law enforcement has been involved.
But what we do know for sure here is the part that matters the most: what happens next.
Because at the end of the day, parents send their kids to school trusting that they’re going to be safe while they’re there. Every kid deserves to go to school without worrying about being targeted, humiliated, thrown into a trash can, or physically hurt by another student.
We don’t say any of this to sensationalize what happened. We say it because when it comes to protecting our children and our youth, we take that very seriously.
We will continue following this one closely.
