Lynn board to debate school behavior

LYNN – The Lynn School Committee will discuss revamping the city-wide behavior policy, to “spell it out” that they have the right to discipline children whose behavior may damage their schools? reputations, at a meeting tonight, Mayor and School Committee Chairperson Judith Flanagan Kennedy said Wednesday.?We as the school committee and school administration have authority to discipline children who are bringing disrespect to their school,” Kennedy said.Kennedy declined to elaborate on her plan, saying she had to “make sure legally it passes muster.”Committee member Rick Starbard said the meeting will probably focus on how to effectively discipline students who bring disrespect to their schools in their day-to-day lives, but said he has major concerns about the “virtual footprint” students are creating that could harm their own reputations in the future.?I?m concerned over the fact that somebody can post videos like this of minors doing incriminating acts that could potentially live online forever,” Starbard said. “I would hate to see something like this come up down the road.”Kennedy echoed his concerns about the effects of social media and said the school code should be updated to account for the technologies students are using these days.?With all the social media and all of the photographic and video evidence for things that take place these days, I just feel like we need to update the protocol to address that,” Kennedy said.Starbard said the regulation of media featuring high-school-age students that is put up without authorization is likely an issue to be dealt with at the legislative level, but didn?t rule it out as a topic of discussion for the meeting.?I think it?ll be more along the lines of the (disrespectful) things that happen between walking out the door on the way to school and when they get home at the end of the day,” Starbard said. “Even just wearing a school uniform, such as the case with the (J)ROTC kids.”The School committee meets tonight at the Lynn Vocational Technical Institute annex at 7 p.m.Taylor Provost can be reached at [email protected].