Adolescence is a tumultuous time for all involved. Individuals going through the transition from childhood to adulthood test boundaries – their own, those of their parents and those imposed by school, coaches and the broader community. In turn, adults in adolescents’ lives are challenged to reinforce those boundaries and help young people learn from their mistakes while holding them accountable for missteps. It is no easy feat, but creating opportunities for accountability, reflection and restoration is central to the process.
In that vein, Durango School District 9-R is proposing steps that emphasize growth opportunities over simply punishing kids for their misdeeds. It is a positive move.
The district’s Healthy Choices Committee is drafting an Athletics and Activities Code of Conduct, in part as a response to incidents involving Durango High School athletes’ substance use at school-sponsored activities. Its focus is on providing a path to redemption with accountability and an opportunity to understand the ramifications of their choices. This is both a sensible and developmentally appropriate approach to helping adolescents address challenges and missteps.
The committee proposes a three-step disciplinary system for using drugs or alcohol. After one infraction, the student would miss 20 percent of the remaining games or events in a given season but could reduce that time to 10 percent through a series of steps including counseling, research projects, restorative justice efforts and community service. The second infraction would garner a suspension of 40 percent of the remaining events, with a possible reduction to 20 percent through the same avenues of accountability. A third episode would end the student’s season. Those caught purchasing, selling or distributing illicit substances face a higher penalty, and a second infraction would immediately end the violator’s athletic season. That distinction makes sense.
Providing young people with a means of owning their misbehavior and correcting their course back to a healthy trajectory is – or should be – the goal of all parents, teachers and coaches. That is reflective of life in the adult world: Mistakes are made, opportunities to correct them exist, and those who choose not to make those corrections suffer consequences. The Healthy Choices Committee is right to propose that model for 9-R’s athletes and activities participants – and recognize that these are kids. As an editorial in El Diablo, the DHS student newspaper, said, “High schoolers make poor choices sometimes. Neurologically, our pre-frontal cortexes remain underdeveloped until we reach about 25. The job then, of the school, coaches, parents and peers of students themselves is to help students make better choices.”
However, the district must allocate adequate resources to this cause. There is not currently a drug and alcohol counselor on 9-R staff, and coaches, teachers and parents are not necessarily equipped to provide this critical service. Investing in such a counselor would meet the Healthy Choices Committee’s good intentions with practical application. The district should strongly consider how to provide the support needed to implement its vision for a more empathetic code of conduct.
