Principal Keven Jones of Mona High School in St Andrew stands firm on the decision to suspend Tracie-Anne Williams' daughter and other students involved in a fight, asserting that the school's policy on discipline was appropriately applied. Describing the incident as a "big brawl", Jones emphasised the importance of adhering to the education regulations, which grant principals the authority to suspend students whose behaviour is detrimental to school discipline.

Mom accuses Mona High of ‘unfair’ suspension during exams

Principal believes school was lenient, emphasises importance of discipline

Jamaica Gleaner/25 Jun 2024/Sashana Small/Staff Reporter 

 

A FRUSTRATED mother is accusing the administration of Mona High School i n St Andrew of blighting her daughter’s academic future after she was suspended from school during the exam season.

Tracie-Anne Williams said her daughter, an eighth-grader and a member of the Students’ Council, was intervening in a fight among three other students last Thursday when she was struck. Her daughter reportedly retaliated and hit back at the student before the fight was eventually broken up by a teacher.

All the students involved in the fight, including her daughter, were suspended for two days, a disciplinary action that Williams believes is unfair to her child.

“She was not the aggressor. She merely jumped in to part the fight, got hit, and hit the person that hit her,” Williams said.

Further, she noted that her daughter missed three exams as a result of the suspension, which will impact her grade nine class placement and subject area selections.

Upon learning about the disciplinary action, Williams said she met with Principal Keven Jones, but he was uncompromising.

“He is putting their academic futures at stake for ego. To me, it was an egotistical thing,” the parent complained .

Williams said she even went as far as seeking the intervention of the Ministry of Education and was informed that it was not customary for schools to suspend students during exam periods. But according to her, Jones “made it very clear that it’s his school”.

“This is my child’s education. It’s her academic future, and I’m willing to go the extra mile,” she said. “Even though my child is not the only child affected ... . I don’t think it is fair because at the end of the day when these scores are on reports, when their GPA (grade point average) is pulled down, then you say the child is not performing.”

She said her daughter ended her first year at the top of her class and was the class monitor.

During the meeting with the principal, Williams said it was revealed that her daughter and other students were involved in a verbal spat four days prior. However, she takes issue with the fact no parent was contacted about the incident.

But describing the fight last Thursday as a “big brawl”, Jones noted that the students were punished according to the school’s policy that was modelled after the Education Regulations.

Section 30 of the regulations gives a public school principal the authority to suspend, for up to 10 days, any student whose conduct is believed to be of such a nature that such a pupil’s presence is having – or is likely to have – a detrimental effect on the discipline of the institution, or who commits any act which causes injury to any member of staff or to any other student.

The principal acknowledged that Williams’ daughter had no previous record of disciplinary issues. But even then, he said, no alternative means of punishment was considered.

“The policy says suspension and that is why they need to learn to behave themselves,” he said. It’s a consequence. You can’t have people just breaking rules and then, in addition to breaking rules, the institution is now charged with the responsibility to accommodate them because they don’t want to miss out on their exams.”

Stating that this case was processed by one of the school’s vice-principals, Jones noted that this kind of offence usually carries up to five days’ suspension, but two days were given to the girls.

In the meantime, Williams is still hopeful that her child will be given a chance to sit her exams.

“She studied for these and that’s three zeroes, and it’s not for her not wanting to sit her exams ... ,” she said.

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