Saturday, December 11, 2004

High School Students' Suspension Big Story in Cincinnati

Everybody in the Cincinnati area is talking about this story.

In a nutshell, an area high school student used the school's normal means for distributing a letter in which he commended his faith in Christ. He was suspended for five days.

Frankly, I understand the stance of the school's administration that distribution of these materials in this way created the impression of preferential treatment for the Christian faith and that the young man was out of line to distribute the materials as he did.

But I also agree with a friend of mine, a local lawyer, who said, "This is the problem with zero-tolerance rules." How truly disruptive, my friend wondered, was this action in comparison with the many horrible things students could do? Five days suspension seems a bit much.

To his credit, the student, Eric Bast, has decided not to appeal the punishment.

He seems like a very cool kid, a free spirit unafraid to be himself: sideburns, multicolored hair, and all. He's also an Honors student and appears to have had a positive impact on the lives of others. Check out Eric's web site, here.

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