you're costing my baby a scholarship ... I'll see you in court!

school says senior cheated on math test, so he's suspended. course, that could ruin his chances in front of scouts, so mom sues - and, in the short-term at least, wins. I'm sensing a trend.

http://yourseason.suntimes.com/boys_basketball/1469560,031009-mills-can-play-restraining-order.article

 

I remember covering something like this a few years ago.

Here's a column about it from the time:

http://www.sptimes.com/2003/08/10/Columns/Don_t_take_bat__ball_.shtml

The kid at the center of it grew up and remained an excellent player, who'll play D-I next year, he graduates in a couple of months.

 

If he's only "alleged" to have cheated at this point, I'm not sure what the problem is here. Sounds like the circuit court judge, in the absence of any real evidence suggesting he shouldn't grant the injunction, made the right decision.

It's interesting that the story does not say whether the kid was also suspended from school in addition to being ruled ineligible to play. If they're so sure he cheated, you'd think he'd also have been booted from class, right?

I'm also wondering, if he did do it, what kind of "hard evidence" would convince the mom and a judge? Did the teacher see him peeking at someone else's test? Did a fellow student complain? Was he caught with crib notes? Or is this mother the type of parent that would justify or deny the kid's actions even if he were found with a machete in one hand and a bloody, severed head in the other hand? Enquiring minds want to know!

Conclusion: too many holes in this story.

 

I agree with Double J on all counts. There's way too many variables to the story to tell the reader and the court whether he was truly cheating or not.

The teacher would have to testify and give hard evidence as to how he/she believes the student was cheating. If the teacher said, "I saw him peeking over at another student's paper," then that probably won't stand up in court because you never know. If the teacher were to have compared his answers to the student's test he was allegedly cheating off of, then there is possibly a case.

 

Anytime the courts get involved, it's not got news.

I would suggest to every school athletic director that in their handbook for student athletes, they make it very clear that representing the school is a priviledge and not a right. And that the priviledge can be withdrawn by school officials at any time for any reason.

Miss a practice, you sit. Fail a class, you sit. Get caught cheating, smoking or breaking some other school rule, you're gone. Period. No questions asked.

There's too much of this "well, I'll go over the coach's, principal's or AD's head and get my way" going on. Not when I was playing. If I were the coach of that team, I would have sat his ass that game. That would have fixed that issue.

We had a kid here who was suspended for the league championship hockey game because he drew five minor penalties the night before in the semifinals. League rule. Didn't matter that he was the team's best player. A rule was a rule. What if he had gone to court and challenged that?

This is opening a Pandora's Box that knows no end.

 

Could not agree with you more on every word you said there.

I don't think schools enforce their policies enough to rightfully determine a student's eligibility to participate in school athletics. More importantly, I don't think students and school administrators really value the importance of the "student athlete."

These students are in school to get an education, and like you said Mark, participating in student athletics is not a right, it's a privilege. Schools need to understand the importance in that "student" comes before "athlete" when referring to school athletics whether it be middle school, high school and even college.

When a student cheats on a test or violates some terms of their student contract, they abuse that privilege and there is, and shouldn't be, any second chances.

This court case only sets a bad example for coaches, athletic directors, teachers, parents and students for thinking that, if this student did indeed cheat, that he/she can get away with it.

 

Too many school administrators don't have the balls to stand up in the face of a court challenge. Financial reasons, I'm sure. Easier to look the other way than spend thousands of dollars in court defending your principles.

 

Schools, I hope, will see the light in the face of this case and the one at Florida State that, a student's classroom education is much more valuable than any lesson they'll learn on the field. I don't discourage or am I remotely against the knowledge and lessons that a student athlete takes with them from the field, but a classroom education is what is going to take many of these kids to the next level.

Sure, there are many, many kids in school who, when in high school, they know they want to go to college to become a professional athlete, but there are many more students who play the game with those same students who are going to go into a career doing something else other than playing professional sports.

 

And Florida State is suddenly drawn to this kid and is not sure why . . .

 

http://abcnews.go.com/us/story?id=4362510&page=1

It's virtually impossible for schools to stop cheaters these days. I think that this kid is an athlete certainly adds an element to this, but it's almost beside the point. Any parent now, almost any where, if something happens to their kid they don't like, they sue.
And schools/athletic associations/whatnot rarely ever win in court.
How can schools uphold any semblance of rule with no greater support from parents, communities, the legal system?

 

Happens here all the time.. No local judge is going to rule in favor of the state athletic association over a local athlete and his family.

In the story I read, hasn't the kid already served a two-game suspension - or at least missed the last two games -- because of the alleged cheating?

Oh, and it's also good to see old mom is worried about a college scholarship and not the kid's fucking math skills. :

 

Simple solution: Bench the kid. Sure, he can suit up, go to the games, but he's gonna sit his ass on the bench.