RCS Administration Has a Lot to Answer For

When I sit down for my Thanksgiving Dinner, one of the things I will thank God for is the blessing of receiving a tremendous education. I am a graduate of Western Michigan University, earned my Master's of Divinity at Andover Newton Theological School in Boston, and completed my doctoral degree at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. I cherish my years of study.

Yet, I hated high school, though I graduated from one of the best public high schools in Ohio in terms of its graduation rates and SAT scores. Most of the teachers were good, some were great; but I hated the atmosphere. The endless recitation of rules and expectations at the beginning of each class, the Vice Principal stalking the halls between classes, suspending boys who's hair was too long or running his hand up the backs of girl’s blouses to see if they were going braless, the uniformed police marching through the halls between class periods and occasionally busting student lockers for drugs (seldom did they find any) made it feel like high school was a prison. The only thing I enjoyed was playing the bass violin in the high school orchestra. At the end of my junior year I knew that I had to get out! Instead of dropping out, I decided to go to summer school and graduate early. By Christmas, I was celebrating my new freedom. I took no pride in my high school, or in my accomplishments. I never went to the graduation ceremony the following spring, and when I heard that those who walked across the stage received an empty certificate folder with no diploma in it, I felt fully justified.

I thank God that my parents sent me on to college. I discovered that I actually liked being in the classroom and that I was good at writing and doing research. I enjoyed the sense of having the freedom to express my opinions in an open discussion with the professor and other students.

Now I hear, once again, that Richmond Community Schools have been publicly downgraded by the media. The Palladium Item noted that it has been dubbed a "Dropout Factory." According to a recent study, RHS graduates less than 54% of it's entering freshmen. Yet, these statistics do not tell the whole story. Included in the dropout rates are those students who enrolled in the ninth grade at Richmond High School and subsequently moved or transferred to another school. We do not know how many of those students graduated from High School. Likewise, those who were held back for a year were counted as dropouts even though they may actually have graduated from high school later on. We have no idea how many dropouts took their GED and passed. It is up to the school board to publish all these facts.

Once we know the whole truth, it will still be clear that the situation at RHS is dismal. Why? I know from my own son's experience, that “most of the teachers are good, some maybe quirky, but good, and some are great!” But what about the atmosphere? Is it positive? A police state? Does the endless testing improve student morale? Does making class periods longer improve student attentiveness? The school administration sets the atmosphere and the administration has a lot to answer for.

Dr. Greene is an ordained minister of the United Church of Christ and a resident of Richmond, IN. He is also the author of Benjamin's Dog Joseph, Feeling Better: The Wisdom of the Doc, You Can Feel Better: How to cope with chronic pain and physical disabilities, and co-author of Walking Free: the Nellie Zimmerman Story.

For further information about his books, please visit www.densmorereid.com

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