THE SUN (Jonesboro, Arkansas) 11 September 08 Snakes alive: Grandmother wants reptiles removed from school (Sherry F. Pruitt)
Jonesboro: The grandmother of two Health, Wellness and Environmental Studies pupils told directors of the Jonesboro School Board at its Tuesday meeting that a classroom red-tailed boa and imitation snake hall decorations should be removed from the elementary magnet school.
Glenda Smith, a volunteer at HWE, noted the size and the magnitude of the fake snakes, two bald pythons, and said they should be removed from above classroom doors because they may scare youngsters.
During her 3- to 5-minute presentation to the board, her husband, Tom Smith, pulled from a bag a fake snake similar to the ones at the school and walked around the room to show directors what had been displayed on what Smith referred to as “reptile hall” at HWE, the former South school facility.
Also disturbing, Smith said, is that the red-tailed boa is sometimes housed in one of the classrooms at the school. The red-tailed boa, named Isabella, is an 8-pound, 5-foot snake housed in a plywood box and shared between HWE and Nettleton Intermediate School, sources said Tuesday.
Board president Joe Cullum cautioned Smith during her presentation that she only had a few minutes to make her case against snakes to the board.
“Please, please, get that away from our children. It’s not an educational toy,” Smith said.
However, Melinda Smith, HWE magnet coordinator, said earlier Tuesday that having animals and reptiles in the classroom is “endorsed by and encouraged by” the Arkansas Department of Education and the National Science Teachers Association.
In fact, she said, science teachers are required to incorporate 20 percent of hands-on activities into the curriculum. Students at HWE feed and care for hermit crabs, a bird, a bearded dragon lizard and other creatures during bio lab time, but the snake is fed and cared for only by its handler.
“It’s all about education. You can bring out the scientific parts of an animal. All of a sudden, you see the child being educated and looking at it with a scientific point of view instead of fear,” Melinda Smith said.
Nettleton Intermediate sixth-grader Sidney Rupple’s family donated Isabella to the school after the snake was used in the Nettleton classroom for two years under the direction of Melinda Smith, a Nettleton district employee who was hired by Jonesboro beginning this fall.
Rupple said she was a bit scared of the snake five years ago when her father got it but not so much now.
Following Glenda Smith’s presentation, Superintendent Dr. Kim Wilbanks told the board the fake snakes were taken down shortly after administrators were made aware of the concern.
However after the board meeting, Glenda Smith said she is still worried about the safety and well-being of Health and Wellness students and plans to continue her attempt to get the live snake out of the elementary facility.
“I don’t intend to let this go,” she said. “If that snake appears in school one more time, we’ll see about making a law against it.”
Grandmother wants reptiles removed from school