RE: http://www.henryherald.com/local/local_story_249235010.html

You had to be there to appreciate the concern and capacity for producing results parents showed. Conversation with panelists Kenyatta Bush and Tom Hester echoed the same sentiments as the parents: We are the community. We are responsible. Open communication removes barriers of skin color or nationality.

I was happily impressed with the meeting at UGHS. Because the lunchroom was filled with parents, friends and neighbors. There was no discord among the 200 or so adults and kids.

I was not impressed by the high emphasis on tax-funded multicultural education. The issues are much larger than concern over 'offending' someone. I am not a touchy-feely guy. Human decency and respect for our fellow man is a product of our homes, churches and communities. I just don't think we should be spending our money on political correctness, consultant coordinators, and such. School is for teaching academics, not social agendas.

The outcome of this gathering was good. It proved that we citizens are committed to our kids and our communities. Several parents talked afterward and seemed to agree: It is not the school system's job to raise my kid - that is my role. What we want is open and timely information and the opportunity to play a positive role. It was good to see officials show active concern, but it seemed nobody needed lessons in parenting and community involvement.

Another obvious point: The kids who would paint on school walls or otherwise disrupt safety were not represented at the meeting. It is true that some kids will show up at school with poor social skills and no active parental guidance. That is a community problem for which too many people want to make the schools responsible. Managing hooligans, unfortunately, throws the school system into a role of enforcement of the peace.

The next step? Don't be a stranger at your kid's school, at their events, IN THEIR LIVES.