SEX WITH A CHICKEN:

When school opened in August of 1993, on the first day of school, the usual documents for parents and students to review and sign were passed out.  That night I got a call from a grandmother who asked me point blank if I had read the Discipline Management Plan before I voted on it.  I told her, that yes, I had, and that as a matter of fact, I had read every word of it and had gone over it extensively with Bonnie Holland when it was first brought to us as a draft in March of 1993.  She then went on to tell me what was in it.  I was dumbfounded, as I really didn't recall the penal code definition of public lewdness being in it.  But I supposed that I could have missed it.

I immediately called Joe Adams, the board president, to tell him, and then I called all the other board members to tell them about what was in the Discipline Management Handbook.

The District was embroiled in a media mess for a week.  People on the radio made fun of us, people as far away as New York City were making comments.  Rush Limbaugh suggested that we were balmy.  Playboy Magazine thought it was amusing. 

I kept thinking that I really didn't think I had seen this passage before, so I started looking through my mess of papers from five months ago to find the draft.

In the meantime, Superintendent Hugh Hayes was swearing up and down in public statements that the Board had approved it, and  that we had "shared responsibility" to shoulder.

I kept looking for my Draft Copy and fortunately in a few days I found it.  And guess what?  The part about the public lewdness was NOT in the Draft Copy.  At our  board meeting the next day, I plopped it down on the table.  As it turned out, when the Board had approved the document in May, the legislation that had been passed regarding this issue, hadn't even been sent to school districts yet, so the Board obviously had not seen the definition and certainly had not approved its inclusion in the Handbook.

Later, an administrator told me that the superintendent and all the principals had discussed the matter, after the board had approved the initial document, and decided on their own to stick the definition of "public lewdness" in the Manual!

Needless to say, an apology was issued by the superintendent.  The Board also issued an apology even though it was not our fault!

1. Letter Sent to Parents By the School Board

2.  Letter Sent to Parents By The Superintendent  Hugh Hayes

3.  Top of the Chronicle Front Page Article About the Matter

4.  Additions Made to the DMP Without Board Authority by Superintendent Hugh Hayes

5.  Addition of Another Unapproved Topic

6.  Readin', Writin', Raunchy?  District Issues Apology