SJSD must address all kinds of safety risks

By NewsPress Now

When keeping students safe, the St. Joseph School District spares no effort or expense.

The district partners with local law enforcement to place resource officers inside schools. This year’s no-tax-increase bond election included $2 million to upgrade intercom communication used during emergencies. The district received a $600,000 grant last year to boost security at the secondary entrances of schools. Levy extensions are a tough sell in St. Jo. Still, votersters in 2019 gave 65% approval to a measure that included significant funding to enhance surveillance systems and security at main entrances of school buildings.

Voters support these measures because they expect every child to return home at the end of the day.

Thankfully, St. Joseph has not encountered the kind of school shooting incident that has become all too frequent in this country. The district is still obligated to prepare for the worst, but these reasonable and appropriate efforts shouldn’t obscure the reality that a shooter isn’t the only danger that kids face.

What if the danger is already inside the school before the bell rings?

Earlier in May, a math teacher at Robidoux Middle School was jailed after an investigation resulted in a felony sodomy charge. After an initial court hearing, some community members expressed outrage that the teacher – Everett “Tim” Harding — could be collecting a paycheck even while facing accusations of improper sexual contact with a 14-year-old student inside the school.

This sentiment is understandable, although we would point out that district administrators have a fine line to walk with due process and tenure law. The more important question that the community should be asking has more far-reaching ramifications.

There are actually two questions. Why was this teacher hired, and were any warning signs missed from the interview process to the day he was arrested?

We don’t know how this case will play out, but several known factors can’t be ignored, starting with the crisis in hiring and retaining teachers. On top of that, Harding had jobs at five different schools in 10 years.

For many hiring managers, this kind of work history is a red flag or at least an avenue of further inquiry during a job interview. School officials will point to participation in the state’s “Rap Back Program” as a tool for identifying teachers with a criminal background, but what about the ones that are quietly let go or bounce from job to job following behavior that was troubling but didn’t lead to a criminal charge?

We don’t know if that’s the case here. But it’s within the rights of the community – and certainly the St. Joseph Board of Education – to demand that administrators conduct due diligence and refrain from grasping at any potential candidate amid a difficult hiring environment.

The other question is whether school officials acted fast enough when questions about the teacher’s behavior began to surface. Police said during the investigation that other staff members later told law enforcement they witnessed alleged questionable behavior before the May 7 incident that resulted in the charge against Harding.

Who were these staff members and what did they do with this information? Teachers are “mandated reporters” under state law, meaning that they have to contact the Department of Social Services if they have reasonable suspicion that a child is a victim of abuse or neglect.

Failure to do so not only impacts the child involved in this case, it endangers future potential victims of abuse or neglect. This case is not just about a single allegation. It potentially reflects a breakdown in guardrails meant to protect children.

The Board of Education must ensure that the district takes all reasonable measures to protect children from every kind of risk. We have no doubt that the board takes the safety of children seriously, but bland statements of letting the case play out won’t do here.