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Phoenix High student leader survives recall School district will continue appeal By Dani Dodge PHOENIX � A student body president who brought drugs to school will keep his leadership position at Phoenix High. A student-led recall against Keanon Ferguson failed Friday in what officials described as a close vote by students. Ferguson, 17, has fought for his title both in court and class. He said he would devote the remainder of his presidency to anti-drug efforts at the school. "Drugs are bad for you," he said Friday. "It took me that incident and the last five months of my life to realize that." Phoenix High School Principal Brian Rhodes said the vote was "fairly evenly split" between those who wanted to recall Ferguson and those who wanted him to stay in office. Ninety percent of students participated. Rhodes declined to give the exact vote. Ferguson, a standout football player and wrestler, was elected to the school�s highest office last spring. In the last week of school, a security guard in the school parking lot found Ferguson carrying a small amount of marijuana and a pipe. Drug paraphernalia was found in his car. Under school rules, he was suspended. Then, in August, school officials took the additional step of removing him from his office. Ferguson�s father, attorney Bill Ferguson, challenged the removal in court. In an Oct. 6 ruling, Jackson County Judge Phil Arnold said that the school district had no authority to punish Ferguson beyond the standard five-day suspension for a first-time drug offense. The following week, a student group called Kids Against Substance Abuse collected 174 signatures to force a recall vote. Students voted Thursday and Friday after a videotaped address by recall organizer Jennifer Hollander and a live address by Ferguson were played on in-class televisions. The result was announced Friday afternoon, moments before school let out. But the controversy isn�t over. The school district is appealing Judge Arnold�s ruling. Officials say the school constitution permits administrators to remove student officers for "actions which are detrimental to the welfare of the school." "This does not change our appeal," said school board chairman Craig Prewitt. Both he and the principal said the recall effort has given students a taste of real-life democracy, and probably enhanced their educations. "This will not prevent us from continuing to have a good school year," Prewitt said. "The kids will continue to learn and they�ve probably learned a lot from this process." Hollander, who didn�t have a late-afternoon class, got a call at home with the recall news. "It wasn�t a shock," she said. "I know he has a lot of influence over the students because he�s popular. His crowd are the group that everyone watches because they are cool." Both Ferguson and Hollander said recent events have changed their lives. Ferguson said he�s learned a great deal about consequences, but also lost trust in some school officials. Hollander said she�s considering changing her career goal from accountant to attorney because she likes standing up for what she believes in. The repercussions could go beyond the personalities involved. School board members and students are concerned the entire mess could make it harder to pass a school construction and repair measure on November�s ballot. And students at Phoenix High say that the last few months have changed their school. Like every other high school, it�s always been a place where there are distinct groups of students: popular kids, "stoners," smart kids, etc., they say. But now there�s more friction inside and less pride outside, students say. Students report more "dirty looks" and mumbled insults in the halls. Keith Gibson, a freshman who plays trumpet in the school band, said when he was at a recent musical performance at Southern Oregon University, he was criticized by students from other schools about having a "dysfunctional student body president." He said everything from the original drug incident to the court action to the recall puts the school in a bad light. "It makes me mad they�ve given my school a bad reputation," he said. Jocelyn Pangburn, a junior, said the recall effort has further divided the school into those who are in "Keanon�s group" � kids who have nice clothes and cars � and everybody else. She said people like her who wear black fishnet stockings with white vinyl lace-up boots are further ostracized. "Everyone in Keanon�s group don�t like other people," she said. "They aren�t accepting of people like us with fishnets and blue hair." And while Pangburn thinks Ferguson has gotten special treatment because of his popularity, others believe he�s been unfairly treated for it. "No one cares usually," said Trace Watts, a freshman. "He�s just another person caught with weed. It happens all the time at Phoenix High." Jennifer Kenton, a junior with a blond ponytail and a Tigger sweatshirt, said Ferguson has been punished enough. "If President Clinton can sleep with someone and still be president, then Keanon should get a second chance too," she said. Ferguson said he wants to make the most of his second chance, then go onto the University of Oregon and play sports. He wants to go to medical school and become a radiologist. He said he won�t ever do drugs again. Since giving up drugs, he said, his athletic performance and attitude have improved. Ferguson said drugs hurt you and your body, as well as everyone around you. "It makes them feel like you don�t care enough about them to take care of yourself," he said. Ferguson said the last five months have been stressful. "I didn�t like having my name in the paper day after day," he said. "People don�t know me; I�m quite a nice guy. I�m dedicated. I�m a very good student. I�m always the first person to say don�t do drugs. "I was stupid and I paid the price for it." Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2000 Mail Tribune, Inc.