A Delaware first-grader who was facing 45 days in an alternative school as punishment for taking his favorite camping utensil to school can return to class after the school board made a hasty change granting him a reprieve.
The seven-member Christina School Board voted unanimously Tuesday to reduce the punishment for kindergartners and first-graders who take weapons to school or commit violent offenses to a suspension ranging from three to five days.
Zachary Christie, 6, had faced 45 days in an alternative school for troublemakers after he took the utensil — a combination folding knife, fork and spoon — to school to eat lunch last month. Now, he could return Wednesday.
“I want to get him back as soon as possible. I want to put this behind him as soon as possible,” said Debbie Christie, Zachary’s mother. “But I also want him to know that he has a voice, and when things are not right, he can stand up and speak out against them.”
A spokeswoman for the school district said more changes to the school system’s code of conduct were possible in the coming months.
It continues to amaze me (and yet not amaze me) how easy it is to be stupid and how much effort it takes to employ common sense. I guess I should be happy that the “right thing” was eventually done, but I’m still annoyed that it took a fight with the school board and embarrassing national attention to get it done.