Some Texas schools to begin corporal punishment

THREE RIVERS, Texas — As part of a new policy that the Three Rivers Independent School District board approved Tuesday, the paddle, likely to be wood, will be used to administer corporal punishment when a student misbehaves at school.

Corporal punishment is defined as the deliberate infliction of physical pain by hitting, paddling, spanking, slapping, or any other physical force used as a means of discipline.

Trustees voted 6-0 on the motion with one member absent. The policy states only a campus’ behavior coordinator or principal can administer the disciplinary measure.

Students in the two-school district about halfway between San Antonio and Corpus Christi whose parents have provided written and verbal consent will receive one paddling for an infraction when they misbehave at school.

Upon registering children for the upcoming school year, parents will be able to decide whether to opt in or out.

Texas is among 15 states that specifically allow schools' use of corporal punishment; 8 other states have no laws or regulations against it, according to the National Center on Safe Supportive Learning Environments,  part of the U.S. Department of Education.

In November 2016, the education secretary at the time, John B. King Jr., sent a letter to state leaders urging them to end the use of corporal punishment in schools, saying the practice is linked to harmful short-term and long-term outcomes for students.

In the short term, students who are administered physical punishment for their actions at school show an increase in aggressive and defiant behavior, according to King's letter. In the long term, students who are administered corporal punishment in school are more likely to later grapple with substance abuse and mental health issues, including depression, personality disorders and post-traumatic stress, according to the letter.

Three Rivers Elementary School’s campus behavior coordinator, Andrew Amaro, a Three Rivers native, hopes the new disciplinary measure will have a more immediate effect on students than in-school suspension or detention. Amaro recalls being disciplined with a paddle during his time as a student.

 “I believe it worked,” Amaro said. “It was an immediate response for me. I knew that if I got in trouble with a teacher and I was disrespectful, whatever the infraction was, I knew I was going to get a swat by the principal.”

Students will be paddled for minor infractions, such as being disobedient to teachers or not following rules in the classroom, Amaro said.

  Three Rivers ISD CP Policy by Anonymous pZCDknqv6 on Scribd

Edited USA Today

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Canceled wedding

INDIANAPOLIS — A bus pulled up in front of the manicured landscaping of the Ritz Charles in Carmel on Saturday. It was a sunny beautiful day.. 

This was supposed to be Sarah Cummins' wedding day. But after the 25-year-old Purdue University pharmacy student and her fiance, Logan Araujo, canceled their $30,000 wedding a week ago for undisclosed reasons, the two were left with the non-refundable would-be celebration.

So Cummins decided to invite people from four area homeless shelters to enjoy the 170-person reception she and Araujo spent two years planning.

The guests from Wheeler Mission, Third Phase Christian Center and Dayspring Center, were selected based on their success in the mission's Steps Toward Economic and Personal Stability program.

"We want to show them that if you excel, good stuff happens," Wheeler case manager Bryan Schrank. "It's a fantastic way to take something that's an unfortunate event, and to bless others. This is like Thanksgiving 2.0 for these guys. Many of them have never had a meal like this in their lives — or at least not in years."

The reception went on as the staff at the Ritz Charles planned it, event manager Sherry Harper said. Outside of rearranging the tables to remove the head table and compressing the time, dinner service happened as planned, right down to serving the wedding cake and the former couple's late-night snack of pizza. The cake, though, was pre-sliced behind the scenes.

"We really didn't change anything," Harper said.

The story has inspired a wave of goodwill around the city and beyond. Matt Guanzon was among those reaching out locally.

The Indianapolis man donated some suits from his own closet so guests could dress up for the dinner, and others pitched in after he posted a request on his Facebook page. His tailor, A. Mina Fine Clothier & Tailors on Monument Circle, donated several pieces, and The Gifted Gown contributed dresses and accessories.

Guanzon, a contract negotiator for United Healthcare, rushed around Saturday in a cargo vehicle loaned by a friend, picking up the formal wear and dropping it off at the shelters throughout Central Indiana.

He even thought of the kids, asking friends to drop off children’s items at the Ritz before the dinner.

Charlie Allen is grateful for his invitation and said, "For a lot of us, this is a good time to show us what we can have. Or to remind us what we had."

Sarah Cummins didn’t feel like attending, but when one of the homeless program directors said he was looking forward to meeting her, she knew she had to.

Three of her original seven bridesmaids, along with her mom and aunts, also came to support her during what they knew would be a hard day for her.

The Indianapolis Star first reported this story Thursday, and it was quickly picked up by national and international media. The massive response, both negative and positive, was overwhelming.

When Cummins approached Araujo, her former fiancée, with the idea of donating the dinner, he agreed to what he thought was a selfless way to deal with something that would go to waste.

She's not sure, yet, what she's going to do with the wedding dress.

Sarah Cummins talks with men from Wheeler Mission, at the Ritz Charles, Saturday.

                  Edited from USA Today              Photo: Kelly Wilkinson - Indy Star