Local school head addresses state lawmakers

Grand Coulee Dam School District Superintendent Paul Turner had an opportunity to give state Senate lawmakers a touch of reality Jan. 9, after being invited to talk about discipline in schools.

He was one of three superintendents that the Senate Education Committee invited to Olympia to tell what was going on in their school districts. Spokane and Battleground school districts were also invited.

The invitation from the senators said not to bring up funding because that was not the purpose of the meeting. Turner was quick to challenge this.

“It is absurd to talk about these issues (discipline) without talking about additional resources and support,” Turner said, speaking from prepared notes which he shared for this article.

That’s when Turner spelled it out and told the committee: “The bottom line, we have a systemic problem that will continue to escalate until the powers to be decide to deal with it at all levels of government. These extreme behaviors are not just a school problem. The state, counties and local communities must step up to the table and partner with schools. This includes additional resources.”

The Grand Coulee Dam School District has been beset with discipline issues that have come to the forefront publicly the past several months.

While the district has tried to develop plans to deal with some of the issues, resources have been a problem.

Turner is quick to point out that many of the discipline issues start in the home, and communities and schools are forced to try to deal with them.

Turner also took the opportunity to raise other issues when he suggested to the Senate committee that privacy laws need to be changed so that information can flow between agencies that are designed to support children.

He also asked lawmakers not to pass laws that constitute unfunded mandates.

Turner also suggested to the senators to increase resources to support high-risk students.

“Research supports smaller class sizes but doesn’t take into consideration the extra burden high-need students have on a classroom,” he said.

Turner added upon his return to Coulee Dam, “If the state isn’t going to step up to the plate and fund it, then we will need to do it locally.”

Turner made the trip to Olympia and back the same day.