DeSoto ISD Superintendent Dr. Usamah Rodgers said she plans to take a closer look at campus interactions and student behavior over the next couple of months after teachers at McCowan Middle School staged an apparent protest.
By Monday, classes were in session and instruction had resumed. Still, at Monday’s meeting of the board of trustees, Rodgers said she was committed to getting to the root of what caused teachers to call out sick in large numbers last Friday morning.
An influx of teachers called out sick at about 6 a.m. that day in response to what the district said were concerns over student-teacher interactions. The district, as a result, called in substitute teachers and reassigned staff to cover the vacancies.
Without going into detail, Blackmon-Jones said teachers have expressed concern over recent interactions with students.
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“The concerns we're experiencing right now are not an anomaly. These are things that are happening at schools across America. These are normal student behavioral concerns as students are growing and learning, they also make mistakes along the way. And so as educators, as a school community, we wrap our arms around them and we help guide them toward [the] right decisions and right behaviors. It just happened to come at a time where there were multiple in a small span,” she said.
Rodgers said she spent time at McCowan Middle School on Monday to better understand their concerns. She said she will continue to take a close look at disciplinary trends and spend time in focus groups at McCowan as part of her plan of action.
During public comment, some speakers reiterated the need for more information about what led to Friday’s callouts.
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Former PTA member, Tara Banks, read a prepared letter from the school’s teachers. The letter read in part:
“We are writing to express serious concerns regarding the current disciplinary procedures within our school district, particularly as they pertain to the safety of teachers and consistency of consequences for students’ behavior.”
A parent spoke on the incident during public comments as well.
“I ask that you all try to get to the root of the problem with the teachers' concerns,” she said. “And if it truly is student behavior or lack of support from the administration or the principal, that you work with them to get answers so we can get some resolution.”
Over the next two months, Rodgers said a team of district leaders will complete an analysis of student behavior and report back to the board at February’s meeting.
