The consequences for an eleventh grader who brought two hunting rifles in his truck to Tomales High School late last month are not yet determined—but the incident has shaken the entire
district.
Parents have voiced concern over the school’s response, arguing that there should have been an immediate, district-wide alert. Others criticized the school for being more lenient with him than with his Latino peers in similar situations.
Of particular concern to critics is the fact that the student is back at school following a five-day suspension, four of which he spent on campus under special supervision.
According to administrators, the student planned to go deer hunting after school and had no intention to hurt anyone.
Under state law, administrators must recommend expulsion, typically a one-year punishment, but administrators say they are delaying any further disciplinary action until they receive final information from the Sheriff’s Office regarding his intent.
Adding to the shakeup, the student’s mother, Shoreline trustee Clarette McDonald, resigned last week, writing in a letter to the county’s Office of Education that she needed “to take this action to focus on my family and personal matters.”
The board has 60 days to fill Ms. McDonald’s position, which represents Bodega, Bodega Bay, Dillon Beach and Valley Ford. It will receive applications until Nov. 9 and interview candidates during a special public board meeting on Nov. 13.
Bob Raines, the district’s superintendent, lamented the decision by Ms. McDonald, whom he called “a model trustee, always thoughtful and well prepared.”
In describing the gun incident, Mr. Raines said another student first notified his own mother about the rifles, and that she in turn alerted the school. The high school principal, Adam Jennings, then contacted law enforcement, which arrived on the scene to see to the removal of the guns and begin an investigation.
“While it was abundantly clear after the investigation that this student did not have these rifles in his truck with intention to hurt anyone, having ANY firearms or other dangerous objects on campus is a serious violation of both California Education Code and California Penal Code,” Mr. Jennings wrote in an email to high school parents and staff on Sept. 27, two days after the event.
His memo, which was translated into Spanish, continued, “Within our community we have many students and families who own guns and enjoy hunting. Furthermore, we have an even larger number who carry knives as tools for everyday work. Regardless of intention or purpose, these objects are never allowed on our school campus.” He urged parents to talk with their children to make these rules known.
The Sheriff’s Office closed the investigation on the day of the event, leaving it up to the school to take disciplinary action. Josie Sanguinetti, the Sheriff’s school resource officer, decided to investigate further after a meeting on Oct. 1 with the student, his mother and Mr. Jennings. It is her finding in regard to intent that the district is now awaiting.
Following a story published in the Marin Independent Journal, Mr. Raines emailed all district staff and the school board with an update on Oct. 17.
Yet during a district board meeting last Thursday, staff members expressed frustration about the minimal level of communication from the administration.
“Since I’ve been driving—I’m working on my 15th year—we have had the issue before, though maybe you haven’t heard about it. Sounds like certain people don’t hear about things,” Roberta Strode, a bus driver, said. “I agree everyone needs to know.”
Linda Borello, president of Shoreline’s chapter of the California School Employees Association, announced union members’ wish to relay a new vote of no- confidence in Mr. Raines for “the lack of leadership, trust and ability to get the job done.” (Ms. Borello planned only to make a verbal delivery of this message rather than submit paperwork.)
She said the gun incident was a perfect example of the superintendent’s failures. “After two-plus years, it is obvious that Mr. Raines isn’t capable of performing his job,” she said. “He had every opportunity to notify his staff of the guns incident, but he didn’t.”
A number of commenters on Thursday flagged a perceived discrepancy between the treatment of the student, who is white, and Latino students who have brought weapons to the school in the past.
Marisela Benito-Ramirez described how her son, now a sophomore in the district, had been expelled for bringing a knife on the bus to protect himself from bullies when he was just 12 years old. She said the Sheriff’s Office closed the case on her son, who had special education needs, without sending him to jail, but that the district’s response had been more extreme—and racist.
“They made a big deal here in Tomales,” she said. “The cops were here. He was so scared, he couldn’t talk because he was scared. He couldn’t come to school for a year, and we had to go to the courts and everything.”
She continued, “This boy is white, my son is brown—Latino. I’m concerned about that because this boy still goes to school, driving his truck in the morning. He is still playing American football there too… For my son, they didn’t give us this opportunity, nothing like that. They said you can’t come here.”
Her comments were met with widespread applause.
Matt Nagle, the former West Marin School principal who now teaches first and second grade at Bodega Bay School, responded to her testimony from his seat in the audience. “I want to tell you, you are 100 percent correct. As a half Mexican-American and [half] white man, I can tell you that you are not off-base. Do not have any doubts: it looks like different treatment,” he said.
A handful of other staff members also criticized the board for the district’s unequal treatment of students.
Last school year, 69 percent of suspensions were handed to Latinos, and 31 percent to whites. There was just one expulsion last year, of a Latino student, for sexual harassment.
Since 2012, there has been only one other expulsion, that of Ms. Benito-Ramirez’s son.
These numbers are not far out of line with demographics: based on attendance records, the district is 63 percent Latino.
Nevertheless, Mr. Raines said, “We know… that the greatest predictor of achievement failure or achievement is race. Are we okay with that? No, we are not. So we need to look at what is in our control to make changes.”
The Marin Community Foundation has supported the district over the past decade in its efforts to look at the achievement gap. The most recent chunk of funds—$440,000 for this fiscal year and next—is dedicated specifically to focus on equity policies, procedures and practices “to make sure that there is equal treatment for all students and families.”
That money is going toward research—such as pulling the above numbers on demographics—along with professional development, family advocate positions, scholarships and more.
Once the Sheriff’s Office delivers its findings on the student’s intent, the district will form an administrative panel comprised of the principals of Bodega Bay and West Marin Schools and two others from outside school districts. Mr. Jennings will present the law enforcement findings to the panel, and Mr. Raines will relay its recommendation to the board of trustees for action.
Under California’s education code, expulsion for bringing a gun to school is mandatory. But Mr. Raines said the board could decide to suspend the expulsion, meaning it would still go on the student’s record but that he would be allowed to stay at school under certain disciplinary terms agreed upon by the administrative panel.
Don Carney, director of the YMCA’s Marin County Youth Court, said that in the case of a suspension, the school can ask the court to draft a contract for the student that would involve a reintroduction to the school system, community service hours, time on the jury and harm-reduction education.
Should the student be expelled, however, the county would be responsible for his education, and would send him to a county disciplinary school.