By Dale Heberlig, Sentinel Reporter
Last updated: Tuesday, March 13, 2007 6:19 PM EDT
An agreement struck Tuesday between Shippensburg school administrators and a mother whose daughter was threatened in a third-grade classroom in January has suspended a federal civil rights complaint filed by the woman and Cumberland County NAACP officials.
Brenda Sampson, president of the Cumberland County chapter of NAACP, says a plan outlined Tuesday by Shippensburg Area School District Superintendent Jacqueline Lesney represents a “positive approach.”
Amy Barnette, the mother of a mixed-race 9-year-old daughter, called NAACP officials and ultimately filed a civil rights complaint after she learned of an episode of racial intolerance that threatened her daughter at James Burd Elementary School on Jan. 17.
According to Barnette, her daughter - Ashayna - found a note on her desk inscribed with a racial epithet and warning her to “prepare to die.” Principal Kenneth Jenkins never informed Barnette of the incident, but Ashayna mentioned the note to her mother a few days later.
Students punished
he note was tracked to two male classmates who were punished with in-school suspension, but a few days later one of the boys accosted Barnette's daughter again, using the racial epithet in front of other students who reported the infraction.
Barnette says she was distressed because the school principal did not report a threat on her daughter's life.
“He acted like he didn't care,” she said. “He said he meant to call me, but that he got busy and forgot. How can you forget a death threat?”
Barnette said she asked for a copy of the note and was told by Jenkins that he had sent it home with one of the boys.
She was agitated further by the lack of response by Lesney and police officials.
Barnette said Lesney “seemed to care what had happened, but she didn't do anything.”
Shippensburg Police Chief Fred Scott said criminal charges were not justified. He says it is legally difficult to establish motive with children as young as the boys.
The civil rights complaint was filed Jan. 29.
Met with administrators
Tuesday's meeting was a preliminary meeting in an attempt to come to a mutually acceptable resolution without further federal action.
Sampson says, “It was an excellent meeting. The school district has taken a positive approach. They were prepared. They should be complimented.”
Lesney says the agreement is the fruit of a cooperative effort.
“It is the result of both parties working together for a positive exchange,” Lesney said following Tuesday's negotiations.
Lesney says there are programs planned that will “create a positive learning environment.”
In particular, Lesney points to a “Character Counts” program scheduled to begin in grades K-5 in the fall and later expand into the middle and high schools.
She says Shippensburg officials observed the program at work in the Greencastle-Antrim School District and trainers from that district will be used as trainers in Shippensburg.
“I really believe this program will help infuse the concept of respect and tolerance in students and staff,” Lesney says.
‘Appropriate solution'
Barnette's complaint to the Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights asked for an “appropriate solution,” that could include a reprimand for the building principal, training for school district personnel on complaint procedures and resolutions, a safety plan written for the district on how to handle discrimination cases, an investigation by another agency and an explanation of findings and enforcement actions.
Tuesday's meeting came after a preliminary finding that the complaint was a valid concern. A civil rights attorney and a caseworker accompanied Barnette and Sampson to the meeting.
If the proposed solution succeeds, the federal complaint becomes inactive.
Jim Bradshaw, a spokesman for the Office of Civil Rights, says a complete formal investigation could take six months or longer.
Barnette says her daughter continues to attend James Burd and is doing well.
“If they follow through with this, it will be good,” Barnette says of the proposed protocol.
