Patrick Judd gets it right

Pat Judd, superintendent of Mountain Empire School District, has made it clear that hazing of students will not be tolerated. On October 30, 2006, twenty freshman football players were led into a locker room, and had their heads dunked into a toilet while it was flushing.

Eight perpetrators were suspended for three days, and placed on social probation for 30 days. This cost the school some athletic trophies and concession income from football games.

Judd was right. Schools do NOT have to win trophies, but they DO have to teach respect for other human beings. And they DO have to keep students safe.

So why does Judd cover up hazing of teachers by teachers? This type of abuse does tremendous harm to the education system. Abusive teachers rule the roost, and excellent teachers are forced out of schools. Kids see it, and learn from it. Judd was a leader in the cover-up of Castle Park Elementary School criminal hazing in 2001. He used hundreds of thousands of tax dollars to hire lawyers to cover up wrongdoing.

What's the difference between the two cases? Judd couldn't cover up the toilet dunking. He thought he could cover up the teacher hazing.