The district is one of 15 in the state that received a grant, $4,000, to participate in the program, which will investigate community service alternatives for students who are suspended.
By: Linda Seida
WEST AMWELL The South Hunterdon Regional School District is one of 15 school districts in the state selected to participate in a program that will investigate community service alternatives for students who are suspended.
The New Jersey Department of Education awarded a $4,000 planning grant to the district to participate in the program, which will be overseen by the Rutgers University Center for Applied Psychology.
The grant was announced during a meeting of the Board of Education Jan. 20. The Department of Education awarded the grant two weeks earlier.
The program will allow South Hunterdon to investigate the option of changing the manner in which students who have been suspended serve their penalty time. Most districts, including South, ban such students from school grounds and activities, including classes, for a specified period of time. The amount of time depends on the infraction.
For their part, students often spend their time out by watching television or surfing the Internet. The philosophy behind the grant says students can benefit more during their time away from school by becoming engaged in some sort of meaningful activity, such as service to the community.
"Those kinds of students can often find great value in community services," said Superintendent Lisa Brady. "They’re given an opportunity to do something meaningful and also help them avoid negative behavior during that time."
The timeline calls for a new program to be put into practice in September, Ms. Brady said. In the meantime, the district will begin discussions with students, parents and "community service partners." The district must identify who those partners might be. Also under discussion will be goals for the program and the sorts of obstacles it might encounter.
A planning meeting will be held in February with those identified as potential "community partners" invited to join in.
During the 2003-04 school year, South Hunterdon suspended 23 students. No students were expelled during that time.
Misbehaving students also can be sent to detention, which they can serve Saturdays at the school. Under the new program, detention Saturdays also have the potential to be converted into community service.
"There’s a lot of potential with this," Ms. Brady said. "The idea is to try to provide them with constructive activities and come away from the experience feeling good about themselves."

