Marine recruit barred from Nixon-Smiley graduation

NIXON — Family and friends of a soon-to-be high school graduate and marine recruit in the Nixon-Smiley Consolidated Independent School District erupted in a social media uproar over what they describe as an unfair punishment of a student who says he voluntarily turned over a knife on the high school campus last week.

Although NSCISD declined to discuss the incident due to student privacy rights, a relative of a high school senior, who was scheduled to walk in Friday’s upcoming graduation ceremony, posted a statement on Facebook Wednesday saying the student had voluntarily turned over a knife he mistakenly brought to school, and was subsequently sent to an in-school suspension program and banned from the prom and graduation ceremonies.

The banned student, Brandon Casas, came forward and identified himself to the Inquirer to speak about not being allowed to go to graduation.

Retelling the story, Casas said on Tuesday, May 12, he brought his pocketknife to school instead of his usual pen. At the end of first period, a coach approached him and asked what was in his pocket Casas identified it as a knife.

“I said I was going to take it to the principal’s office,” he said.

The coach escorted Casas to the office, but at the time Principal Trey Alexander wasn’t there.

“The principal wasn’t there, so I went to the next highest, [Counselor Jaci Tramell] and she wasn’t there,” Casas explained, “so [coach] took it and said he was going to hold it for me and said I wasn’t going to get into any trouble.”

Casas then said that the coach handed it off to athletic director Carlton McKinney who turned it in, saying that they took it from him.

At the end of the day, Casas was brought to the office where he was informed that he will be sent to in-school suspension for three days. Administrators said a meeting would be held Monday, May 18 to determine whether he would receive more punishment. Casas believes he would also have a chance to tell his side. The punishment also barred Casas from attending prom.

Before Casas identified himself to the Inquirer, Superintendent Dr. Cathy Lauer said that while student privacy rights prevent the district from discussing the incident in question, they are reading and considering the Facebook comments.

“With that in mind, it seems a good time to clarify a few policies and practices,” Lauer said.

Lauer mentioned that NSCISD code of conduct is written and enforced for the safety of all students, and that a knife on campus is an automatic Disciplinary Alternative Education Program (DAEP) placement.

“High school students are reminded of this and other rules at least twice a year in class meetings,” Lauer said. “However, a student who brings a knife to school and realizes he or she has done so, can voluntarily take it to the principal’s office and will be treated differently.”

Lauer said that conversely, when a student is found to be in possession of a knife by a staff member, he or she will be subject to disciplinary consequences. In addition, parents or guardians who disagree with a discipline decision can seek a review by following the steps in board policy.

Also, there is a page in the school handbook that addresses graduation for DAEP students, under “impact on graduation.” It states that graduating seniors who are in DAEP during the last week of school will continue in the placement throughout graduation, and the student will not be allowed to participate in commencement exercises and related graduation activities.

On Monday, Casas came to school to discuss what happened but found that his punishment wasn’t over —without giving him a chance at an explanation.

“They said that there wasn’t going to be a meeting,” he recounted, “[and] that the superintendent already made her judgment and was not going to let me walk on graduation.”

“I was a little frustrated. I wanted to be respectful still. I mean, I’m a Marine and all I think about is respect. I didn’t want to argue really but I did say that that’s unfair that they’re not going to listen to my side of the story.”

Casas is set for basic training in September to begin his military career as a Marine.

Principal Alexander then told Casas that he was going to talk to Lauer to see if they can get a meeting so that he’d at least be able to explain the situation.

A meeting was agreed upon and Casas came back the following day to explain what happened. After his explanation, Casas claims that Lauer didn’t want to overrule her initial punishment because, as he said, “she didn’t want to give any leniency so that other students will think they are going to get away with it if they do the same, even though I willingly turned the knife in myself.”

Casas said he has the support of many students and teachers, which has been prevalent as few have taken to social media sites like Facebook and Twitter, writing on NSCISD’s official page with the phrase #LetBrandonWalk in hopes of allowing him to participate in the graduation ceremony with his classmates.

Although he admits bringing the knife to school was wrong, Casas believes the punishment went too far.

“I still brought it, but they went too far. I can’t even be at school right now. I basically graduated.”

Anyone with concerns can reach Lauer at (830) 582-1536 or by sending an email through the NSCISD web page “Ask the Superintendent” link.