BALTIMORE (Map, News) - Student athletes are unfairly targeted by a Carroll policy in which they can be forced off a team if they’re with others using drugs or alcohol, parents say, even if they’re caught with neither.

“There’s a lot of concern if you’re an athlete you get tagged, and if you’re not, nothing happens to you,” said Mary Alexander, Parent-Teacher-Student Association president at South Carroll High School.

“It’s more a matter of keeping it fair across the board, and I think that’s a major point of concern.”

Carroll’s policy covers not only participation in sports but all extracurricular activities.

Only a handful of counties in Maryland have that policy, and Carroll Superintendent Charles Ecker has formed a committee of parents and schools officials to gather public opinion and determine if it is too strict, said Dana Falls, Carroll’s student services director and head of the committee.

Alexander said the policy takes on too much of parents’ responsibilities and encourages student athletes to drink at parties because if they are caught and haven’t been drinking, they still get in trouble.

“I can see both signs of the coin, but I think we need more parent involvement,” Alexander said. “I have three children and, yes, I’d like to know if my children are at a party where there’s alcohol. But I’d also like to know how it got there, and that doesn’t seem to be part of the equation.”

The four other Baltimore metropolitan counties do not have countywide policies to bar students from extracurricular activities unless they have drugs or alcohol.

The committee is formed every few years, but public input was scarce last time, Falls said.

The committee will report to Ecker by May 15 after two public hearings.

msilvestri@baltimoreexaminer.com

Comments from Examiner Readers

7:54 AM MST on Fri., May. 9, 2008 re: "County teachers �upset� by raise; increase lowest in more than decade"

Examiner Reader said:
We're sick of ignorant people such as yourself who have no idea what "teaching" actually entails. Most people are paid for their extra hours. Most people aren't cussed out by kids all day. Most people know that resorting to name calling is a sign of stupidity. Grow up.

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6:22 AM MST on Fri., May. 9, 2008 re: "County teachers �upset� by raise; increase lowest in more than decade"

Examiner Reader said:
Cry Baby teachers. Every body works hard these days. Most people put in extra hours. Many people work alot harder than teachers. I'm sick of their whining.

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7:52 AM MST on Thu., May. 8, 2008 re: "County teachers �upset� by raise; increase lowest in more than decade"

Examiner Reader said:
Go complain to the NEA. The taxpayers are more than a little incensed at their sky rocketing state, local, and property taxes.

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9:09 PM MST on Fri., May. 2, 2008 re: "NAACP member appointed to the Carroll school board"

Examiner Reader said:
(To the reader who posted below) I don't think that line you quoted states what you said it does. Reading further, the writer was disagreeing a previous statement that suggested teachers don't work very much. I appreciate the efforts of those who teach my child. I notice their hard work.

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3:39 PM MST on Thu., Apr. 17, 2008 re: "NAACP member appointed to the Carroll school board"

Examiner Reader said:
"...[T]here is nothing mentioned about the extra time put into the [teaching]job outside the contracted hours. It is not a job that ends when the school day is over." The problem with that worn argument is that it implies the rest of us--outside of the teaching arena--do not similarly put in more hours than are officially recorded. Quit whining. Don't like teaching? Try a job where your success or failure dictates whether you remain employed!

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6:06 PM MST on Wed., Apr. 16, 2008 re: "Teacher salaries, reducing class sizes school renovations dominate debate"

Examiner Reader said:
you rule

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1:35 PM MST on Tue., Apr. 15, 2008 re: "Parents: Drug, alcohol policy targets athletes"

Examiner Reader said:
This policy does not seem practical especially because only there is only one Baltimore County that enforces this policy. Rather, other counties in Baltimore have policies saying that they will force students out of sports teams and other extracurricular activities if the students themselves possess it or consume it. I agree with Alexander regarding Carroll�s policy which has more of an incentive for students drinking at parties because they the students feel that regardless if they are �caught� and are not drinking them still get into trouble. Yes, this policy does impose more responsibilities on parents so they can be more on a look out for their children. Nonetheless, even if this policy were not to exist, parents should still always check what their children are up to regardless of busy lifestyles. If parents keep an eye on their children, it can keep them out of trouble. This policy is a little unfair as well because it forces students out of teams even if the student did

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8:42 AM MST on Sat., Apr. 12, 2008 re: "NAACP member appointed to the Carroll school board"

Examiner Reader said:
So was this person the best choice for this job or was she put here becuse of the race game?

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6:53 AM MST on Wed., Mar. 19, 2008 re: "Parents: Drug, alcohol policy targets athletes"

Examiner Reader said:
Previous poster is right, very right. There are only so many good teachers out there. We have 2.8 million k-12 teachers in the country. Baltimore County has a mixture of good and not so good. Teachers convince your unions to not allow the weak teachers to be carried by the good ones. They are the ones limiting the salaries of good teachers not the county executive. I suspect he would be in favor of differentiated pay based on performance.

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6:53 AM MST on Wed., Mar. 5, 2008 re: "Carroll condom class nixed"

Examiner Reader said:
The power of the church.

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9:11 PM MST on Wed., Feb. 27, 2008 re: "Teacher salaries, reducing class sizes school renovations dominate debate"

Examiner Reader said:
A previous comment demonstrates the misunderstanding much of the public has about the work a teacher does. There is more to it than meets the eye. Though the typical contract requires teachers to work 10 months a year and 7.5 hours a day, there is nothing mentioned about the extra time put into the job outside the contracted hours. It is not a job that ends when the school day is over. Check out an elementary school parking lot an hour after the students leave. Half of the staff is still there. The other half took work home. Just like police, public works, and others paid with tax money, the salaries of teachers will always be controversial. As a teacher with a Master's Degree, it is disheartening to see friends and family with much less education in less essential jobs, making more money. If more teachers took the advice of the commenter below and went to other jobs for more money, our nation's kids would pay in the end. There are only so many good teachers out there.

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6:09 AM MST on Sat., Feb. 23, 2008 re: "New slots for teachers OK�d to limit class sizes"

voter said:
Would love to see an article with the percentage of money spent within the budget on different areas. Teacher salaries are only one area of the budget. Raise teacher salaries or hire more and something else must be cut. Sorry but that is life. What should be cut? Maintenance of building? Textbooks? Libraries? Sports? Band? Janitorial service? Lawn maintenance? Busing? Lesson materials? Computers? Counselors? Face it, education is expensive. But cc board of commissioners must cut 8 million.

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10:32 AM MST on Tue., Jan. 15, 2008 re: "Teacher salaries, reducing class sizes school renovations dominate debate"

Examiner Reader said:
I agree with this comment and I think people do appreciate the fact that a public school teaching career is not path to riches. The facts are clear that a perceived low salary is not the top reason teachers leave. Many become teachers without a real appreciation for what is involved in the job. In the first few years you like it or not. If we hire smarter, we might retain longer but when you lose 200+ teachers in one year you have to hire who shows up. Working conditions and in-school training that addresses current teacher professional development needs are the bigger hot buttons for teachers frustrated by the move to teach-to-the-test rather than proficiency in a subject. Salaries is what we hear about because teacher's union officials keep harping on it - he who has the gold makes the rules. Ask a real teacher why they stay or leave and get some real feedback.

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7:22 AM MST on Wed., Jan. 9, 2008 re: "Teacher salaries, reducing class sizes school renovations dominate debate"

Examiner Reader said:
I'm always surprised at people constantly complaining about teacher salaries. They work fewer hours per day than a lot of people and fewer days out of the year than probably everyone else with a full time job, probably at a maximum of 75% of what many people do. Think $37,000 is low? Bump it up by 25% to in excess of $46,000 and it doesn't seem so bad does it? Everyone knows what teacher salaries are and many people who go into the profession balance that with the huge amount of time off, vacations, benefits, etc. If you want to earn more, choose a different profession and work 50-52 weeks out of the year, 8+ hours per day.

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5:31 AM MST on Fri., Dec. 7, 2007 re: "Carroll could lose at least $8.5 million from state"

Examiner Reader said:
The real reason for this is carroll votes republican. The Dem's do not care about the children, they only care about power and retribution.

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3:55 AM MST on Fri., Dec. 7, 2007 re: "Carroll could lose at least $8.5 million from state"

Sven said:
The solution is ALWAYS the same. Raise taxes.

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