#MeToo in middle schools

The issue of sexual harassment and assault that the #MeToo campaign has exposed is now shifting from celebrities and political figures to a much younger age group; students at a Florida middle school are now being suspended for similar allegations.

Faculty at Daniel Jenkins Academy in Haines City, Florida, have had to report three separate instances of sexual harassment in the last six months among students to the administration of the middle school, according to a science teacher at the middle school who wished to remain anonymous.

"The boys are bullying girls and calling them really ugly names, things like 'whore' and 'slut'," said the teacher. "For a while, they were saying it so that no one else could hear it other than the girls that were being targeted so they kept getting away with it."

In one instance described by the teacher, a student confided in the teacher that a boy had been following her in the hallways and harassed her about her body.

"He keeps trying to sit next to her in class but I'm doing my best to keep her separated from him, there's not really much else I can do," said the teacher. "Only the administration has the power to punish the boys for their actions."

Only two boys have been suspended from the Academy in the last two years, yet numerous instances have been reported to the administration. According to the teacher, the school board handles cases of sexual harassment in the same manner that it does bullying.

"In the school board, if you don't prove that it's happening and that it's constant then they won't do much about it," said the teacher.

The administration has declined to comment on this issue.

The teacher has advised female students experiencing these issues to keep a booklet that documents each instance to help prove that they are facing these issues to the administration.

"Last year there was a girl on the bus who was being harassed and no one believed her," said the teacher. "That's when I started suggesting to girls to keep a journal. They shouldn't have to do things like that but it seems like the only way to help them."

In trying to determine the causes of these issues among pre-teen aged kids, it is important to look at how the child has been raised as well as their levels of impulse control, said Dr. Jill Driest, a licensed pediatric psychologist.

"There are lots of different reasons for potential sexual behavior problems. Most of the research discusses chaotic family life, poor parenting practices, maltreatment in childhood, or other mental health concerns as contributing factors," said Driest. "Obviously, in these situations, it is always important for the child to receive effective interventions to deal with the problems - as early as possible."

Apart from psychological explanations, the teacher from Daniel Jenkins believes that cultural factors are a major cause of the inappropriate behavior among the middle school boys.

“There’s less of a sense of community than we had 20 years ago. I’ve noticed this erosion throughout the school. There’s a huge shift in the way kids behave and it has to do with respect,” the teacher said.

            The video games, movies and television shows that kids are being exposed to nowadays play a major role in shaping how young boys view girls their age, says the teacher.

            “I think it’s pervasive in the media, the media promotes women as objects. If you watch a lot of television, girls are in sexy outfits and even in the video games they play, the avatars of the women are all voluptuous and sexy and it just promotes seeing women as a second-class citizen and as an object rather than as a person,” the teacher said.

            The likelihood that this issue is only prominent at Daniel Jenkins Academy is slim; when dealing with issues of sexual harassment and assault, typically there is a pattern shown that presents it to be a reoccurring problem.

            According to a 2014 study conducted by the University of Florida’s Professor Dorothy Espelage, of 1,300 middle school students studied, one quarter of them reported having experienced verbal and physical sexual harassment.

            “This is a reflection of our culture. It’s a reflection of what’s on television, a lack of respect,” said the teacher. “Daniel Jenkins Academy is mostly Hispanic. It seems as if their culture is different. They’re told by their mothers ‘You better not touch the girls,’ and I don’t think this happens often enough in American culture. There’s a real cultural divide between the Hispanic kids, the kids from the islands and Central America and the kids who grew up here in the United States.”

Written: February 27, 2018

Daytona Bike Week- Women Riders

As Tracy “Nice Lady” Brouwer leans down to adjust the straps on her leather motorcycle chaps, a group of men clad in similar fashion passes by and each claps her on the back, greeting her like an old friend.

            “I’ve been riding for 45 years,” said Brouwer. “I was one of the first woman riders, and I’ve really racked up some miles over the years.”

            As Brouwer leans against her special edition 2002 Harley Davidson Dyna at Daytona Beach Bike Week, she explains that in the world of riding motorcycles, especially as a woman, you have to earn your respect.

            “I’ve put on over 105,000 miles on my bike, I ride more than any man I know,” said Brouwer. “2,500 miles is usually the average that most men I know hit.”

            I spent the afternoon following Brouwer around Daytona’s Bike Week on Main Street. As we weaved our way through the crowds, Brouwer gave me some advice on how to tell the difference between women riders and passengers. An older couple was passing by and Brouwer tugged me to a stop so she could break down the woman’s outfit for me.

            “You see that lady over there? She’s an older woman, she’s stayed in shape and she looks good, but what she’s wearing is where you can tell that there’s no way in hell she owns her own bike, which is a shame,” said Brouwer. “The shoes are always a dead giveaway. If you look down at mine, you can see that I’m wearing boots. If you look at hers, well, her heels aren’t going to do her very good on a bike. You don’t dress for the ride, you dress for the slide.”

            The roads are closed off along Main Street and hundreds of motorcycles are parked along the sidewalks with crowds of people going in and out of the local bars and bike shops, some stopping to watch the parade of chrome thunder driving past.

            After stepping foot onto Main Street, it’s clear that men make up the majority of  the motorcycle riders in attendance.

            “Back in the day, they didn’t make women’s biker clothes,” said Brouwer as we passed Biker’s Pride Clothing Store. “I had to either buy men’s clothes or kids clothes. The chaps I’m wearing right now actually are men’s, size medium. The industry doesn’t know what women want.”

            In the windows of the biker’s clothing stores, it’s easy to tell which clothes are reserved for women. Black leather corsets, fishnets and short, skimpy skirts are on display for the women to buy, while men have a wide range of protective riding gear to choose from.

            “There’s absolutely a stereotype when it comes to women riders. People seem to think that there aren’t any [women riders]. That’s why I’ve been working hard for the past 45 years to improve that image. To have you even walking around with me here asking me about my experience as a woman rider, that just proves that what I’ve been working hard for has paid off.”

            Although riding has been her passion for 45 years, teaching has taken up a large portion of her time as well. Brouwer has a doctorate degree and has been teaching business at Virginia College in Charleston, South Carolina.

            “Teaching is great, it’s a good career to go in to, but it doesn’t give me the same thrill as riding does. I always said that I fit in with the motorcycle gang cause I’m a garage girl, I grew up working in garages. That’s another thing that’s helped me earn my respect, I can take apart my motorcycle and put it back together again, no problem,” Brouwer said.

            Brouwer and I continued walking down Main Street, occasionally stopping to say hi to bikers that she met at the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in South Dakota, an event that her and her husband, nicknamed “Da-weird”, attended for 22 years in a row.

            “Real motorcyclists have nicknames. They’re names they’ve earned in one way or another, and they’re given to them by any other member of the biking community. Mine is ‘Nice Lady’ and I think it fits my personality pretty well,” Brouwer said.

            Walking around Daytona’s Bike Week for the first time was overwhelming for a newbie to the motorcycle scene, like myself. It was intimidating to see crowds of rough men and women walking towards you, clad in heavy leather gear with menacing tattoos. A few different bars along Main Street had signs in their windows and on their doors specifically stating that minors, weapons and ‘colors’ were not allowed inside.

            “Biker gangs are a real thing, but they’re not really like what you would see on TV,” said Brouwer. “Everyone you meet here is really nice and they’re all more than willing to talk to you, especially the women riders. They know that they’re breaking the stereotype, and I love being a part of that.”

Palm Beach County School Funding

Voters in Palm Beach County, Florida, approved an increase in sales tax in 2016 from 6 cents per dollar to 7 cents. Half of the funds collected were given to Palm Beach County schools to aid in renovation of infrastructure. Unfortunately, while the school buildings and roads were given a much-needed facelift, the programs that educate the district’s students were left untouched.

Palm Beach County is the nation’s 11^th largest school district with 200,000 students and over 12,000 teachers, according to James Gavrilos, the president of the Education Foundation of Palm Beach County, a non-profit organization that assists in raising money for schools.       

A lack of school funding for programs that teachers use to help their students learn more effectively as well as essential school supplies has been an ongoing issue for years. More often than not, the funding for the supplies that students may need to succeed comes from the teachers.

            “We’re handcuffed with what we can do because a lot of the ‘extra’ stuff comes out of our pockets,” said Sam Pasley, a 10^th and 11^th grade teacher at Olympic Heights Community High School in Palm Beach County. “We do get lead money every year which was about $250 this past year, which is money from the state that we’re allowed to spend. Other than that you get maybe between one and two hundred dollars from your school that you’re allowed to spend on supplies and anything above that you have to spend on your own.” 

            Compared to other states, the way that Florida’s school system has been organized has created an unbalance between school districts throughout the state. The lack of school funding is greater in districts with larger amounts of students, which means that districts such as Jefferson County with 85,000 students is not as effected by the minimal funding as Palm Beach County is.

            “In theory, every county has its own education foundation,” said Gavrilos. “The whole concept of an education foundation is becoming not only more popular, but its also becoming a necessity.”

            Teacher salaries, electricity and insurance for the schools are all covered through the district’s budget, but when a teacher at a particular school has a creative and innovative idea, the education foundation steps in to help fund it from the private side, according to Gavrilos.

            In Palm Beach County, schools are funded by tax dollars which have not been enough in the past to help the schools properly function.

            “People are now all excited because there’s been a huge budgetary increase in funding per student, but all of that is geared for security, for more resource officers and for mental health guidance counselors. In terms of the actual running of the school, there’s very little increase at all per student. The bulk of the school funding is coming from the state government.”

            Because of the lack of proper funding from the state government to support all 185 schools in Palm Beach County’s district, more schools are turning to the private business sector in hopes of a financial partnership.

            “Something that I’ve thought about for a long term funding plan is what if we could get 185 businesses to adopt a school. You commit a certain amount of money per year and that would help fund some of the teachers’ programs that there is just no money for,” said Gavrilos.

            Palm Beach County is known for its philanthropic community. A large portion of the county’s population is very wealthy and, thankfully, just as charitable as well. The challenge that faces the school district is that there is a gap between the interests of the upper class and the proper funding for schools.

            “These people have never identified with education, that’s the problem,” said Gavrilos. “Many of their grandkids go to school in different states, so they think that what happens in Florida doesn’t affect them. Our message is, we all need to care because we have a business here. Where do you think your next generation of employees, consumers, customers, doctors and lawyers is coming from? If our public schools aren’t top quality, who is going to do all of those jobs? Everyone should have a vested interest in what’s going on with the public education system.”

            Teachers who have had more experience with elementary school students can attest to the difficulties of trying to help children that were failed by the district. Many students that struggle with basic educational skills have been passed on through the school system because the schools didn’t have the funds to spend on programs designed for the kids who need a little bit more help than others in comprehending the material.

            “There’s too many gaps. Students aren’t building a strong enough foundation, so if they don’t have a strong foundation to start with, then it’s just like anything else; you can build on it as much as you want but if you don’t have a strong foundation then they’re not going to be able to learn properly,” Pasley said. “If they can’t count, if they can’t add and subtract then teaching them multiplication, division and fractions won’t stick. When I taught 3^rd grade math at a different school, I had a lot of students who couldn’t even read the questions on their homework. It created a whole other list of problems that the school didn’t have answers to.”

            Pasley spoke about the issues he has faced with school funding and related them to his own struggles of living off a teachers’ salary with a wife and a newborn child.

            “It’s so easy to spend $1000 in one trip to the store when working in elementary schools. Those kids need a lot more material than kids in high school do, they need more crayons, construction paper, colored pencils and more art supplies so that they can connect with the subject material much easier. You also have to consider that in really large school districts, in public schools especially, you’re more likely to be teaching kids that come from a low socioeconomic background. I can’t expect their parents, the people who struggle to keep roofs over their kids heads, to go out and buy all of this extra supplies, it’s just not going to happen. So it’s definitely a lot harder on me and my family financially because I’m supporting so many more kids than just my own.”

According to Gavrilos, Palm Beach County has made a more significant effort in the last ten years to turn schools into the best that they could be. Part of this decision was based off of the type of business that the county is hoping to draw in.

            “You have businesses who are coming into Palm Beach County now. Anytime the business development board goes out to recruit a business, the first thing they ask about is the quality of the public schools,” said Gavrilos. “If Amazon for example is going to come here, they want culture, good highways, access to the airport, but the number one thing they want to know about is how well the public schools are doing. I’m glad that the school board has made a concentrated effort to try to increase the quality of the school system with their funding, but I hope their surge of effort doesn’t die down anytime soon, or our kids are going to suffer for it.”