EDITORIAL

Editorial The good, the bad, and the ugly Woo situation shows need for parents, admin to improve

AAs an editorial board we have dug through the resignation of John Woo; our findings can be seen on pages 4-6. We recommend that you read them before continuing.

When the smoke has cleared, we at the Voice have decided that three groups of people need to be addressed: those who participated in negative Facebook commentary, the students who expressed their views, and the district administration.

To those who participated in the negative Facebook com mentary: We do not feel the discussions in both Huntley Chat and Huntley Opinions reflect the friendly community Huntley is supposed to be.

We pride ourselves on being a community that supports those around us, and yes many came out to support John Woo, but many also came to bash the families involved in the incident.

Facebook is no stranger to online disputes; adults argue over everything from politics to restaurant reviews. But many of the posts we saw regarding this situation targeted a new subject: two children.

The boys involved in the Woo conflict were ridiculed for their previous behavior and “reputations.” While some may delete their comments we all know nothing truly disappears. Comments in which the boys’ names were involved could possibly follow them into their futures.

Targeting a child on a social media platform is a classless and immature act and must be called what it is: cyberbullying. We teach our kids to think before they post, “if you don’t have anything nice to say don’t say anything at all.” Yet, when it comes to what mom and dad want to post, there is no limit on what some will say regarding a child.

“It bothered me that even the adults on social media started turning their focus on the students, saying some things that are really kind of upsetting that as a member of the community they would say something like that or treat any students like that. I don’t care what their age is, they’re still students,” president of the BOE Michael Fleck said.

The attacks on the two boys did not stop at social media. On March 5, at the COW meeting, many stood at the podium and continued to target the actions of children and their parents.

Not all of the adult speakers were wrong in what they said, but those who spoke about the boys and their families were. When adults take to a public forum to bully a family, then children think it is okay for them to do the same. The culture of our schools depends on mature adult leadership, and in this case the adults have failed the kids. To the students who protested: We applaud you. Almost all social media posts by the students affected were positive and only spoke to Woo’s character and impact at Huntley High School. While we do not have access to every single post made by students, we could not find any that shed a bad light on the two students involved.

It was impressive to see our student body organize and participate in petitions and walk-outs. This form of civic-engagement helps provide a clear message while still respecting all parties involved.

When those protesting a decision act with civility and respect, their message is received with less anger from the opposing party.

At the same COW Meeting many students spoke alongside the parents. All of the students’ statements were much more respectful and dignified than the adult statements.

Seniors Matt Guido and Sydney Novak; junior William Hartzlog; and sophomores Michelle Chan, Sunni Kwon, and Kayla Le all spoke in front of the board.

Each of their statements included testimonies to Woo’s importance to Huntley HS, and some proposed alternative courses of action. All students were respectful to the district and the families.

“I’m not going to sit up here and call out names because in my opinion that is not very right. I think what we should do is talk more about what a great man he was and how he helps everybody in the school,” Guido said.

And lastly, to the district ad ministration: We urge you to learn from this unfortunate event. We have spoken to many employees, both on and off the record, and we are upset by the events that have taken place. John Woo is a good man, but we understand that both sides of the argument regarding his resignation are valid and understandable.

According to Superintendent Scott Rowe, administrators, security personnel, and some special education teachers and paraprofessionals undergo Crisis Prevention Intervention training, Woo included.

Here it seems, that training was not enough.

We urge you to consider the effectiveness of this training. If other or more extensive training was done, would we be in this predicament?

Furthermore, general education teachers are not put through this training at all. If there were to be a physical altercation in their classroom a teacher has no training on what to say or do. This needs to change.

Moving forward we all need to learn something from this. Parents, staff, and administration: please consider your role in this event.

It has been a troubling time for everyone but it is not too late to grow from it as a community.

One last voice

Elaine Texidor Krause Spanish Teacher Passionate Devoted

What made you become a standout student in high school? As a whole, I was one of those kids that was pretty self-directed. I didn’t need to be told. I was already a self-motivated student.

What is the most rewarding part about your job? I think the most rewarding part about teaching is the fact that the kids hopefully come out of my class prouder and more secure about their culture and language. As long as they have that, I feel like I have done my job. If they have that, then they can take that and run.

Why is teaching Spanish for Spanish Speakers different than your other classes? My kids feel like family here because it is the only time they get to be amongst other Latino kids and it’s the only time they have ever been amongst other Latino kids. So they have this bond but they are a little chatty but I don’t care as long as they are chatting in Spanish.

Where is your favorite place to travel? I love Spain. I feel comfortable in Spain. I have friends there. The other place where I would love to live is Ireland. I loved Ireland. Ireland is very close to the Hispanic culture on the sense of they are very open, demonstrative, and outspoken.