AZAN
SPALDINGS, Clarendon:
RICHARD AZAN, Member of Parliament for Clarendon North West, is calling on the Ministry of Education to revoke the appointment of the Reverend Maurice Mundle, board chairman at the Lesterfield Primary and Junior High School.
The MP's call follows the suspension of an entire grade nine class last week, after a name-calling incident which reportedly involved the board chairman and a group of students.
According to Mr. Azan, it was brought to his attention by parents who have students at the school that over a week ago, the chairman went to the institution to reschedule a board meeting.
NAME-CALLING
Upon leaving in his motor car, students called Rev. Mundle, who is the pastor of a church in the area, 'Jimmy Swaggart', the name of the well-known international televangelist.
The chairman, who reportedly took offence to the name, drove back to the institution, made a report to the acting principal Sydney Macmillan, and requested that the students who called him Jimmy Swaggart be suspended.
The acting principal was unable to ascertain the names of the students who called the board chairman the name and proceeded to issue suspension letters to the entire class numbering under 40.
The move reportedly angered the students, their parents, some teachers and the member of Parliament. Mr. Azan told The Gleaner that the move was not only unwise but that it was illegal, as he is not aware that the board chairman has the authority to order that students be suspended.
When The Gleaner contacted the board chairman, he confirmed what was reported, but said it was a boy who called him Jimmy Swaggart and not a group of students.
"The boy called out 'Jimmy Swaggart' in the class while a teacher was in the class teaching and the other students were there preparing for whatever," said Rev. Mundle.
ONE BOY SUSPENDED
The board chairman said he took offence to the name as the televangelist had confessed some years ago that he had had an affair outside his marriage.
Rev. Mundle said the boy who called him Swaggart was called into the principal's office and his teacher asked to write to his parents, inviting them to a
meeting with the principal.
"I did not suspend the entire class. It was just that one boy I dealt with and I was surprised to hear that the rest of the class was suspended," said the chairman.
When asked if he has the authority to request the suspension of students, Rev. Mundle said, "Yes I believe so."
Contacted for comments, education officer in charge of the school, Hugh Munroe told The Gleaner that the situation merits serious investigation as he believes that the chairman went over board with the decision.
WARNING NOTE
Mr. Munroe said the incident did not merit suspension of the boy involved, much less the entire class. He pointed out that if it was a case where there was a first offence and the students and their parents were called in for a meeting regarding the matter and the students warned, then the name-calling continued, the students could have been suspended for a maximum of three days.
When The Gleaner contacted the acting principal, he refused to comment on the incident and the decision taken to suspend the students. He confirmed that the students who were in class at the time of the name-calling incident were in fact suspended for five days.
He was unable to say what aspect of the code of regulations governing school was breached by the students.
George Henry
