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Mich. Students Suspended Over Alcohol-Related T-Shirts
May 21, 2008

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News Summary

A group of Michigan high-school seniors who wore T-shirts referring to themselves as the "Class of .08" has received one-day suspensions for violating school rules, Fox News reported May 16.

About 50 Stevenson High School students wore the shirts, with "Puschin' It To The Limit" printed on the front (in an apparent reference to Busch beer) and "Class of .08 Seniors" (referring to Michigan's legal limit for blood-alcohol content) on the back, to celebrate "spirit week." School officials called the shirts inappropriate.

"People wear shirts worse than this, with Guinness, Jack Daniels and Corona on them and don't get stopped," said Stevenson High senior Jared Belsley. "To get in trouble for a shirt like this made up for spirit week is kind of absurd."

Students said the shirts were intended to be humorous, not offensive.

The suspensions mean the students could miss prom and graduation ceremonies.

COMMENTS ON THIS ARTICLE:

Posted by Frank Winkler on 22 May 08 02:38 PM EDT
Too often, schools seem to resort to knee-jerk over-reactions that result in inappropriate sanctions as well as adverse press publicity and negative community reaction. If a clear violation of policy did occur here, some form of administrative action might be appropriate, e.g., a referral to an alcohol awareness program for offenders followed by a student-presented seminar, which might have better served the purpose. As it is now, they have only created resentment and negativity for their "authoritarian, over-kill" action, while having done nothing to address the underlying problem, i.e., student perceptions and awareness about alcohol abuse, as well as the negative perception of the school's exercise of its administrative authority in responding to such activities. There are no winners here.

Posted by MM on 22 May 08 10:28 AM EDT
It should also be noted that a 16-year-old student from Stephenson High School was involved in a crash last Saturday, killing a father of two and severely injuring his fiancé. Per the Livonia Observer, the teen is suspected to have been driving under the influence of alcohol.

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