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Students divided about leader caught with pot By Sara Murphy PHOENIX � A judge�s decision to reinstate the Phoenix High School student body president who was caught with marijuana on campus last spring is being met with mixed reaction � and confusion � from the student body. School administrators in other districts are using the Phoenix case as an excuse to review their own policies, as well as a reminder to stick to set procedures when a situation calls for student discipline. The discussions among students and school officials are the fallout of a case involving Phoenix High�s student body president, Keanon Ferguson, who was removed from his leadership position after he was caught on campus with a small amount of marijuana and marijuana paraphernalia in June. The 17-year-old senior was reinstated last week after his father, Bill Ferguson, sued the Phoenix-Talent School District, alleging his son was punished more severely than allowed by school rules. In a ruling issued Thursday, Jackson County Judge Phil Arnold ordered the district to reinstate Keanon Ferguson to his position. The school board � standing behind its position that the district has "broad authority" to "reasonably" discipline its students � immediately reinstated Ferguson but has vowed to appeal the judge�s decision. Crater High School�s new principal, Karyn Lynch, said she�ll use the Phoenix case as an opportunity to see how her school�s policy stacks up and help avoid a similar situation in Central Point. "After reading that story in the paper, I thought, �That�s one thing I need to do, is reread our policy,� " Lynch said. At North Medford High School, assistant principal Buzz Brazeau said he hadn�t heard any talk about reviewing the school�s policy. But the Phoenix case will serve as a reminder to stick to the school�s policies should trouble arise. "If we were faced with a situation � and certainly we hope we�re not � we would be looking to make sure that we followed our procedures and hopefully our procedures would stand up," Brazeau said. In a casual lunch-hour survey Monday, student sentiment at Phoenix High seemed to waver greatly from those who feel Ferguson was punished unjustly to those who say he wasn�t punished severely enough. Many students said, however, that use or possession of an illegal drug shouldn�t interfere with a student officer�s ability to perform leadership duties, such as organizing assemblies. "(Ferguson) needs to get his job back," said Jennifer Knight, a freshman. "He did something wrong by smoking weed, but he did something that wouldn�t affect his position." She added: "As long as he wasn�t stoned while he was giving a speech." Senior Jake Mahon, one of Ferguson�s friends, said school officials broke their own rules when they removed his buddy from the job. "There wasn�t anything (in the school�s policy) saying he could get fired for what he did," Mahon said. Ferguson, who was president-elect at the time, initially received the standard punishment for first-time offenders of the school�s drug policy, including a five-day suspension and citation to appear in juvenile court. He was also supposed to miss one of his first functions this year as student body president, a penalty that applies to students who participate in extra-curricular activities. Over the summer, however, school officials decided to remove Ferguson from office, a decision later affirmed by the school board. In court, an attorney for the Fergusons argued the school overstepped its bounds in two ways: First, the school has no written policies that say a student leader could be removed from office for drug use. Second, school policy says only students may recall a student body officer. Superintendent Dave Willard said several students had asked questions about the process of recalling a student-elected officer, but no action had been taken as of Monday. A recall effort, Willard said, requires student petitioners to gather signatures from 20 percent of the student body. A schoolwide election would then be held to determine the officer�s fate, he said. Mahon said he doesn�t think that will happen. Ferguson has enough student support to be re-elected if there were another vote, he said. Some students, however, side with the school administration, saying student leaders should be held to a higher standard when it comes to rules. "I think it�s sick," said Ashley Marsden, a senior who expressed concern that Ferguson was reinstated on a legal technicality. "What happened to morals?" On the other hand, Marsden said, the school is to blame for its own legal troubles. "I think the school totally screwed up," she said. "They didn�t go by the rules." Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2000 Mail Tribune, Inc.