Spring Cove School District committee discusses 4 policies

Cyberbullying, discipline under review

ROARING SPRING -- Members of the Spring Cove finance and legal committee discussed four policies that continue to be reviewed by committee members and Beard Legal Group.

Rodney Green attended his first meeting as acting superintendent Monday evening, listening to school board members weigh in on policies, such as the bullying/cyberbullying policy recently revised by the Pennsylvania School Boards Association.

Board member Alyssa McGregor suggested adding a discipline matrix to the policy to ensure children without an Individualized Education Program or a 504 Plan are disciplined equally, based on the severity of the conduct.

"That way it's fair, and it's consistent across the board," she said.

She also said the policy's definition of AI-generated or modified media doesn't specify what media is considered inappropriate.

Considering that definition, board member Troy Wright said he would like to see what the administration wants because they discipline students every day.

"What can we do to be able to help them?" Wright asked the board.

He said there is too much burden on the school when it comes to cyberbullying because people expect the district to be on alert constantly.

"We're going to handle the discipline of something that didn't occur here, that didn't occur during school hours, but somehow, it's going to fall back on the school," he said.

Green suggested an administrative team meeting to address the topic and generate more ideas, along with the discipline matrix.

The board sent Beard Legal Group a copy of the proposed discipline matrix, McGregor said, and they are waiting for a response.

The committee also weighed the paragraph in the conduct and disciplinary procedures policy that board member Misti Fisher recently requested to be reviewed.

Some board members agreed that the paragraph -- which states that a district may take disciplinary action for employee conduct that occurs during or outside assigned duties when conduct interferes with school activities -- could infringe on freedom of speech.

McGregor said they want the staff to feel that they can exercise their freedom of speech, but sticking a giant sign in her front yard with foul language about the president is a different story.

"I would be disciplined for that because freedom of speech still comes with a cost," she said.

Wright wished they could deal with the issue on a case-by-case basis, but it's impossible because the definition of disruptive varies from person to person.

After the meeting, Green said reviewing school policy isn't linear, as PSBA regularly updates policies to comply with school codes.

Mirror Staff Writer Colette Costlow is at 814-946-7414.