Five Chattanooga Center for Creative Arts students have been suspended after two separate incidents involving drugs on campus, school officials said.
Earlier this week, a male student brought hydrocodone to school and either was asked or offered to give the medicine — used for moderate pain or as a cough suppressant — to a female student, Hamilton County Schools Deputy Superintendent Rick Smith said.
The female student then took three pills and gave them to two of her friends, Mr. Smith said. The students are not being identified because they are minors.
Later in the week, the same male student had marijuana and gave it to the same female friend, Mr. Smith said.
Principal Debbie Smith then received a phone call from one of the students’ parents and started to investigate, he said. Officials also learned a fifth student who was not involved in the earlier transactions had marijuana, Mr. Smith said.
The students were suspended for a year as spelled out in the district’s zero-tolerance policy pending a hearing. Mr. Smith said he expected all the students to appeal.
So is zero tolerance really zero tolerance where drugs are not tolerated? Or does it become, we will suspend them for twenty days, and allow them back into the same exact school that they brought the illegal substance to before? The only lesson that is really getting sent, is it's not ok to bring them, and we say we are going to really take a tough stance on this, but if you ask nicely, we will allow you back onto the same campus, to repeat the same transgressions or worse, again. Zero Tolerance has NO teeth, or is it the ones that make the decisions about it. If you tell me that I am going to be suspended/expelled for one calendar year, and that turns into a twenty day hiatus at an alternative school. That is not zero tolerance, it is a joke, and the kids know this. Get some backbone and have zero tolerance really mean zero tolerance!
Or login with:
New Account