SGA and administration reach agreement over lock-out policy

SGA president Eric Hysen and the administration have reached an agreement over the lock-out policy this morning. The SGA will not appeal to the Superintendent's Office in favor of revisions to the lock-out policy and more inclusion in decision-making.

The agreement comes after the SGA's appeal to Principal Phillip Gainous was rejected. Instead of appealing Gainous's decision to the Superintendent's Office, the SGA will have other options with the administration's support. In accordance to the agreement reached today between Hysen and administrator James Short, the administration has agreed to work with the SGA to create a formal version of the hallway policy. The formal version will include a process for students to appeal detentions, and it will be distributed to the entire student body. Also, the administration will collaborate with the SGA to create formal procedures for the administration to hear student input in school decisions affecting students before those decisions are made.

According to Hysen, copies of the changes in the policy will be distributed to students in the next few weeks. The revisions to the lock-out policy will go into effect immediately.

Under the revised lock-out policy, students may attend academic support with a teacher at their lunch instead of serving detention. Students must have their teacher sign the detention slip, and the students are responsible for dropping the slips off in their administrator's office.

If a student feels that he or she was late for a valid reason or was unfairly given a detention, the student may meet with his or her administrator, who may agree to reverse the detention.

Gainous designated Short and Business Manager James Funk to revisit the lock-out policy, because of their involvement in implementing the original policy in the freshmen hallways at the beginning of the school year. According to Hysen, he will work with Short and Funk to examine other potential consequences for lateness, as well as devising a formal appeals process for detentions or suspensions in the next few weeks.