Portsmouth High students to honor Florida shooting victims at assembly

Administration not behind a walkout March 14

By Jim McGaw
Posted 3/7/18

PORTSMOUTH — Administrators say while they can’t permit Portsmouth High School students to participate in a national walkout March 14 to honor victims of last month’s Florida …

This item is available in full to subscribers.

Please log in to continue

Log in

Register to post events


If you'd like to post an event to our calendar, you can create a free account by clicking here.

Note that free accounts do not have access to our subscriber-only content.

Day pass subscribers

Are you a day pass subscriber who needs to log in? Click here to continue.


Portsmouth High students to honor Florida shooting victims at assembly

Administration not behind a walkout March 14

Posted

PORTSMOUTH — Administrators say while they can’t permit Portsmouth High School students to participate in a national walkout March 14 to honor victims of last month’s Florida school shooting, pupils will still have the option of paying tribute at an assembly that day.

“We want to make sure kids have a voice, and we want to make sure the kids are safe,” PHS Principal Joseph Amaral said in an interview Tuesday. “Those are the two priorities. We have some suggestions that they could do as an alternative (to a walkout).”

Mr. Amaral said student walkouts are prohibited in the PHS Student Handbook as they may pose a threat to student safety. “We don’t endorse walkouts because they’re unsafe and they’re a disruption to the school environment,” he said.

Terry Cortvriend, chairwoman of the School Committee, said the Rhode Island Association of School Committees advises that school boards not support walkouts. “If kids leave campus, there’s a liability issue. We can’t endorse them leaving campus and not coming back,” Ms. Cortvriend said.

Superintendent Ana Riley, who met with Ms. Cortvriend on Monday, agreed.

“We want the students to be activists and participate in government, (but) we also need to make sure they’re safe,” she said. “It’s about safety and managing that number of students. It’s not like you’re taking a gym class outside.”

However, administrators said they wanted to make sure students still had an opportunity to respond to the Feb. 14 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., which left 17 people dead.

“We decided this was going to be a day about the students, so we let the Student Council come up with a plan,” Ms. Riley said.

According to Ms. Cortvriend, on March 14 there will be an assembly at the PHS field house that’s open to any student who’d like to participate.

“There will be a minute of silence for each one of the students who was killed at Parkland. Their names will be read,” she said.

During their advisory, PHS students will be able to write letters of support and encouragement to current students at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, Mr. Amaral said.

The district is also trying to set up a meeting with Congressman David Cicilline so that students can directly share ideas on the changes they’d like to see enacted to further promote student safety, the principal said, adding he’s hoping that will happen some time next week.

The PHS Social Studies Department is also using the event, whenever possible, as a learning opportunity. “We’re using this as a teachable moment as a lesson in civics — how to manifest your voice in making real change in a Democratic society,” said Mr. Amaral. 

Students are already taking advantage of numerous outlets to express their opinions on school safety, he noted. “There’s a lot of avenues that students are taking to manifest their voice. Some of them are writing blogs, some of them are writing letters, some of them are going to demonstrations,” he said. 

Don’t ‘squash’ enthusiasm

At a presentation about gun violence legislation Saturday at the Valley Inn, Nan Heroux of the Rhode Island Coalition Against Gun Violence said she hoped the schools would permit some type of walkout, but that students were nervous about possible suspensions.

“I hope that adults, teachers and administrators help make this a reality. I don’t want to see (students’) enthusiasm squashed,” Ms. Heroux said.

Another presenter at that meeting, however, seemed to favor what Portsmouth schools ended up endorsing. 

“If they’re going to take 17 minutes to protest, I hope they’re active and doing something productive,” said Jennifer Boylan of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America. 

She suggested the students write letters to legislators, make signs and find other ways to get their message across. “It could be a teachable moment,” she said.

Ms. Cortvriend said she can see both sides of the issue.

“The Rhode Island Association of School Committees advised we shouldn’t make the schools a place of ‘us versus them.’ On the other hand, I’ve received calls from parents who said it was a little disingenuous that there was no mention of the gun debate that kids in Parkland are raising,” she said.

After reading comments from parents on social media, however, Ms. Cortvriend said she’s not sure the schools are a good place for that debate.

“I’m torn on whether we really want to pit kids against each other,” she said.

Mr. Amaral said he believes both the district and student leaders have come up with a fair solution that will allow students to have their say on the issue, but in a respectful and safe way.

“In light of the things that have happened nationally, we want to make sure to respect their voice, to validate that voice,” he said. “My goal as school principal is to make sure they’re safe and to give them a voice … to unite our school.”

Portsmouth School Committee, Portsmouth High School, school security

2024 by East Bay Media Group

Barrington · Bristol · East Providence · Little Compton · Portsmouth · Tiverton · Warren · Westport
Meet our staff
MIKE REGO

Mike Rego has worked at East Bay Newspapers since 2001, helping the company launch The Westport Shorelines. He soon after became a Sports Editor, spending the next 10-plus years in that role before taking over as editor of The East Providence Post in February of 2012. To contact Mike about The Post or to submit information, suggest story ideas or photo opportunities, etc. in East Providence, email mrego@eastbaymediagroup.com.