Headmaster Beth Smith should be commended after all is said and done. As the Principal and disciplinarian at Shelton High School it had to be difficult changing her mind and allowing James Tate to attend the Senior Prom. After 150,000 Facebook Posts, letters to the Editor, Newscasts around the nation and editorials ad nauseam, one would think Ms. Smith was not a competent individual in a leadership role.
The truth is that Ms. Beth Smith believed in the principles of disciplinary action by being fair and consistent. I choose to believe that was her modus operandi for attempting to stop Mr. James Tate from going to a once in a lifetime event, The Senior Prom.
Ms. Smith should be commended for doing a very difficult thing. Changing her opinion under public pressure. When you have the world vilifying you and the Mayor and students as well as the media questioning your verdict it must have been very difficult.
In the end, Mr Tate will be allowed to go to the prom and Ms. Smith will ultimately sleep better at night knowing that she made the right decision to back peddle. Most politicians do on a regular basis. The end result however, would have been a cruel and unusual punishment for a student that had good grades and no prior blemishes on his transcripts. A good time will hopefully be had by all and Ms. Smith will not be remembered as the villain that deprived a student of his rites of passage. Thank-you on behalf of all of the strangers that came forward to support this student and urged you to change your mind.
Steven L. Auerbach
Bridgeport,Connecticut
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