Spare the rod?
Gallup-McKinley County School Board looks at corporal punishment

By Bill Donovan
Staff writer

GALLUP — Corporal punishment has been disallowed in Gallup-McKinley public schools for decades.

But what exactly is corporal punishment?

Ed Monaghan, an assistant superintendent for the school district, said there was some confusion in the minds of some people about just what constitutes corporal punishment so the school board members Monday passed an addition to the school’s policy that spells out exactly what a teacher or staffer can and cannot do to a student.

Forbidden at all times:

• Spanking, paddling, striking, squeezing or pinching any part of the body;
• Forcing the student to assume uncomfortable positions, such as putting his or her hands over the head;
• Restraining or restricting physical movement by binding or tying the person up;
• Enclosing the student in a confined space such as a closet or box;
• Using exercise as a punishment by requiring student to do push-ups or laps. However, there’s an exemption on this one that allows physical education teachers and coaches to use push-ups, laps or something similar as disciplinary or motivational measures as long as the amount of exercise is reasonable.

The only other exemption to this policy: An employee may reasonably restrain a student whose conduct is violent or physically disruptive.

In other action at Monday’s board meeting, the school board members tried to resolve an ongoing problem in trying to appoint a representative to the local labor board.

Although the labor board has been in existence for more than a year and really hasn’t done anything, board members are looking at the appointment of a school representative to the three member board.

They were supposed to do that at the last board meeting but didn’t. They were then supposed to do it at Monday’s board meeting and didn’t.

Part of the problem seems to stem from confusion within the board about what it wants to do with the local teacher’s unions — the McKinley Federation of United School employees — which has been trying to get certified by the school board for more than five years.

In an effort to learn more about the union issue, the school board scheduled an executive session before Monday’s regular session but while the representative of Management Associates, the organization hired by the district which is doing its best to keep the union out, showed up, the union representative had a flat coming to Gallup from Albuquerque and failed to show up. He met with the board but local union officials were kicked out of the meeting.

So did one of the school board members, Joe DeLaO, who was unable to make last night’s meeting.

There was a lot of discussion and disagreement about when to bring this up again — one board member suggested April while another suggested later his month.

In the end, the board decided to hold another executive session on this whole union business on Jan. 7 with strict orders that both sides be represented and that all five board members be present for the discussion.