Ohio Christian School Tells Student to skip prom or be suspended

[JCFantasy23]

Ohio Christian school tells student to skip prom


Fri May 8, 12:05 pm ET
FINDLAY, Ohio – A student at a fundamentalist Baptist school that forbids dancing, rock music, hand-holding and kissing will be suspended if he takes his girlfriend to her public high school prom, his principal said.
Despite the warning, 17-year-old Tyler Frost, who has never been to a dance before, said he plans to attend Findlay High School's prom Saturday.
Frost, a senior at Heritage Christian School in northwest Ohio, agreed to the school's rules when he signed a statement of cooperation at the beginning of the year, principal Tim England said.
The teen, who is scheduled to receive his diploma May 24, would be suspended from classes and receive an "incomplete" on remaining assignments, England said. Frost also would not be permitted to attend graduation but would get a diploma once he completes final exams. If Frost is involved with alcohol or sex at the prom, he will be expelled, England said.
Frost's stepfather Stephan Johnson said the school's rules should not apply outside the classroom.
"He deserves to wear that cap and gown," Johnson said.
Frost said he thought he had handled the situation properly. Findlay requires students from other schools attending the prom to get a signature from their principal, which Frost did.
"I expected a short lecture about making the right decisions and not doing something stupid," Frost said. "I thought I would get his signature and that would be the end."
England acknowledged signing the form but warned Frost there would be consequences if he attended the dance. England then took the issue to a school committee made up of church members, who decided to threaten Frost with suspension.
"In life, we constantly make decisions whether we are going to please self or please God. (Frost) chose one path, and the school committee chose the other," England said.
The handbook for the 84-student Christian school says rock music "is part of the counterculture which seeks to implant seeds of rebellion in young people's hearts and minds."
England said Frost's family should not be surprised by the school's position.
"For the parents to claim any injustice regarding this issue is at best forgetful and at worst disingenuous," he said. "It is our hope that the student and his parents will abide by the policies they have already agreed to."
The principal at Findlay High School, whose graduates include Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, said he respects, but does not agree with, Heritage Christian School's view of prom.
"I don't see (dancing and rock music) as immoral acts," Craig Kupferberg said.
___
Information from: The Courier, http://www.thecourier.com

 

[crishmael]

Well the schools rules are ridiculous, but he did agree to them. If he goes, he'll have to deal with the consequences.

 

[Texas Lynn]

The idea this school chooses to enforce such a ridiculous rule is a good argument against sending one's children there.

 

[ebia]

FINDLAY, Ohio – A student at a fundamentalist Baptist school that forbids dancing, rock music, hand-holding and kissing will be suspended if he takes his girlfriend to her public high school prom, his principal said.

The first time I read the first paragraph I missed the bit about it being the public highschool prom. I was thinking "a prom without dancing, music, hand-holding or kissing doesn't sound very interesting at all".


This bit really cracked me up:

"In life, we constantly make decisions whether we are going to please self or please God. (Frost) chose one path, and the school committee chose the other," England said.

He may be right. But not necessarly in the way he meant.

The handbook for the 84-student Christian school says rock music "is part of the counterculture which seeks to implant seeds of rebellion in young people's hearts and minds."

And the gospel is...?

What a bunch of self-rightous ....
What on earth was his dad thinking of sending him there?

 

[Texas Lynn]

This bit really cracked me up...He may be right. But not necessarly in the way he meant.

That such a pecksniff can claim the high road just shows the length to which cognitive dissonance can go.

And the gospel is...?

Obvioulsy their gospel is one of political correctness.

What a bunch of self-rightous ....
What on earth was his dad thinking of sending him there?

There's warnings on cigarette packs. There ought to be the same on buildings run by extremists like these.

 

[DTrain]

Thats ridiculous

 

[Texas Lynn]

Thats ridiculous

What is?

 

[Hentenza]

I'm just sorry for the kid. His parents sent him to that school knowing what the rules were so they have no right to complain. I did hear that the kid went to the prom anyway. Good for him.

 

[Cabal]

What I find bizarre is the principal's action - he decided to sign the permission slip and then threaten disproportionate levels of punishment if the kid went. Surely if his rules were that important, why not just refuse to sign the permission slip? Kid doesn't get to go, but it would probably have avoided the ensuing news storm.

 

[CyberPaladin]

Well one major flaw from everything I have read about it is while the school allegeds it has a clear list of behaviors it considers to be immoral, it definetly has no list of punishments that correspond with the behavior that are consider to be immoral that's decided by the whims of committe that the school has that's made up of church members.

 

[Texas Lynn]

What I find bizarre is the principal's action - he decided to sign the permission slip and then threaten disproportionate levels of punishment if the kid went. Surely if his rules were that important, why not just refuse to sign the permission slip? Kid doesn't get to go, but it would probably have avoided the ensuing news storm.

It kind of reminds me of Bob Jones University's changing the policy which before prohibited interracial dating and then afterwards did not. They didn't apologize at the time but did I believe years later. Those who resist change and assert their own illegetimate authority will bristle and bluster but eventually they will wimp out because they are nothing but cowardly bullies---and what else would the powers that be at a school with such a silly rule be?

 

[56Bluesman]

I think this whole affair is pretty sad for the school and the young man in question, given some news reports claiming that the parents might be considering legal action against the school. I've already read some hypocritical and hysterical comments from those of an atheistic or liberal secular bent, on a few news blogs, who want government to get entangled into this mess because they can't tolerate the notion that christian schools exist, let alone set rules of moral conduct which admittedly can look foolish and petty as to particular offenses to outsiders. I'm not seeing any winners in this at all if it should go to court. It will turn into an enormous christian bashing festival for the media to feed on, and the state of Ohio will be dragged into religous buisness that it shouldn't have to deal with, along with the potential for the federal level to get involved.

I think the school is cranky and legalistic in it's worldview. I do share many of the same theological views they do, given that I am a conservative evangelical baptist, and I'm sure they'd give me the riot act for also being a musician, and that's a different matter, yet I still have to support their right to set their rules of general conduct. Even if I think they tend to be cranky and legalistic, which I do, especially in this case. I applaud the kid for standing up for what he believed to be right, but sadly he needs to take the consequences he faces, and his parents also knew what they were signing their son up for. I just hope and pray that the courts stay out of it, as it really isn't their buisness to sort out what's really a squabble among christians.

 

[56Bluesman]

Okay folks, I've thought more about this incident, and have prayed for the parties involved. Here is my additional two cents worth of opinion. The Lord brought to my mind to remember his teachings about making sure that when we say yes that it means yes, and for our no to mean no. If I'm mistaken about my understanding of the events please correct me, but my understanding is that the principal of the christian school in question did sign a permission slip required by the public school to attend the prom with his girlfiend who went the public school.

In my opinion the principal violated the clear teachings of scripture by signing yes to something that he was against in the first place, and hence abdicated himself in the manner of any right to complain about it later. I'm sorry but he violated what I've learned about being a leader and being given command responsibilities.

I once worked for a large retail concern where while I wasn't a direct manager or supervisor, yet my position as a senior team member made me the defacto person in charge, with limited authority, when no managers or supervisors were present. I had to make some decisions in that defacto capacity to guide the team members under me, but if there was a controversy, I had to go with my training and experience to make a decision, while always making sure to tell my team members that I was the one to take responsibility if anyone in management had issues with my decision that were negative. Never would I allow myself to give permission to anything that went against my convictions in regards to the functions and rules of the department I worked in.

I'm sorry but if the principal had signed their name to a permission slip they should bare the heat from the school board for their command decision. To have signed to something you were against in the first place, and then to get the school board to bring down it's wrath upon the student you gave your permission to go do that you were unsettled with, is an act of moral cowardice and it's unethical. It's called hypocrisy. They should let this kid take his finals and graduate with his class, given the up front action of the principal. If they persist, then they are acting like hypocritical bullies in my opinion.

 

[synger]

This reminds me of something we went through earlier this year with our second grader, who is in public school. She got in trouble for chasing the boys and kissing them. It goes against their no-touch policy.

Now, we think it's a silly rule. Second grade girls and boys have probably been playing chase and kiss games for a long, long time. And Gem's gentle enough to lay off if someone tells her he doesn't like it or want to play.

But the rules are the rules. So we told her that she needed to abide by the rules, and she should not play chase-and-kiss with the boys anymore. We wrote a note to her teacher acknowledging that we had told her this, along with a side note sharing our opinion on the silliness of the rule.

Well the commentary wasn't appreciated, it seems. The teacher wrote back to try to explain the rule further. We responded that we understood, and we were fully supportive of the school to discipline Gem if she continued to break the rule. But we still thought it was a silly rule.

A day later, the Principal called my husband! She was rather upset that he wouldn't completely agree with them that this was a good and salutary rule. He politely listened, re-iterated our view of the rule, and re-iterated that we fully supported the school's right and duty to uphold their rule.

There will always be rules that seem stupid to someone. The no-touching rule in school is probably there for a very good reason, and is, I'm sure, useful in limiting pushing, fighting, and rough-housing. But it's a rule, and if you break it there will be consequences.

Kinda like speed limits. You can speed... but then you shouldn't complain when you get caught and ticketed. *shrugs*