The Southern Baptist Academy Blog

By Mimi Rothschild

It appears as though there is more to the aforementioned cheerleading scandal than initially met the eye.  The New York Post enters the fray.
The girls in question not only bullied their fellow students, but were able to intimidate school administrators. Apparently one of the student’s mothers was the principle of the school. Mom had no problem with her girls acting this way, and abused her power to award them preferential treatment.

Now, teachers and parents are coming forward to complain that Theret created a climate of fear bolstered by a culture of retaliation, litigation and Texas employment laws that made firings easy.

Ward said some teachers had changed grades for these girls because they feared for their careers.

“The principal made sure that every teacher knew that their job was on the line. I can’t tell you how many times I thought I was going to lose my job,” Ward said. “I was scared to death. It was a nightmare.”

This is the sort of school board politics that goes on in every school. Power plays and blackmail is fine while the welfare of the children goes unnoticed.

I don’t blame the girls. Kids will push as far as their parents will let them. In this case, the incompetence of the parents and teachers is the root of the problem. The public school system only succees to cultivate this kind of social dichotomy.

Fortunately, there is a way out. There’s no bullying in my homeschool.