Blog: Mr. Paul, Let’s Talk: My Kids Have Questions

January 11, 2008

As first reported here at NorthEscambia.com Thursday morning, Escambia County Superintendent of Schools Jim Paul was arrested for DUI in South Florida early Thursday morning.

Mr. Paul…let’s talk. My kids have questions.

Both of my girls are students in your school district. One is a bouncy first grader, age six. The other is a maturing young lady in the fourth grade, age 10.

They got off the school bus Thursday afternoon as they do every day. Ran down the driveway and bounded in the door. The oldest one is pretty smart for her age. She’s loves to read. She loves to write. She’s taken a great interest in what I do on NorthEscambia.com everyday, and often goes with me to cover some of the feature stories here.

When the girls got home Thursday afternoon, the oldest asked me what I had written about during the day. I had to tell her first about you, Mr. Paul. Like I said, she’s a bright kid, and she had an idea who you are.

DUI, I told her. She’s been taught about alcohol, and she knows that it’s a bad thing. And she knows that you can’t drink and drive.

“Isn’t he Mrs. Pomeroy’s boss,” she asked. Mrs. Pomeroy is her principal at Bratt Elementary. I told her yes.

“Isn’t he suppose to tell her what to do,” she asked. Again, I told her yes.

“If he was drinking that stuff and driving around,” said my youngest daughter, “is my teacher going to do that? I don’t want my teacher to do that. That’s bad.” Let me remind you that she’s just six.

Mr. Paul, I want you to read that last paragraph again. Think about it and try to understand it with the mind of a little child.

I’m going to repeat it for you. “If he was drinking that stuff and driving around is my teacher going to do that? I don’t want my teacher to do that. That’s bad.”

At six, she loves her teacher. She looks up to her, and looks up to the example she sets. She understands, Mr. Paul, that you are in a position of responsibility over her principal and over her teacher…her hero. She understands that adults are to set examples for children.

This is not about politics. This is not about whether or not you should resign. It’s not about any of that you’ve certainly heard and read in the media the past day.

This is about the simple thought process of a child. The teachers in our county are our children’s heros, mentors and friends. My six year old does not get politics. She gets the fact that you did something very wrong as her teacher’s boss.

This is about my children. This is about the thousands of children in our district. Sure, the middle school and high school students are going to understand what you did. They are going to get it.

But my six year old does not get it. I want you to explain it to her.

We are all listening.

UPDATE: Mr. Paul did respond to these questions in an exclusive interview with NorthEscambia.com Friday afternoon. To hear that interview in its entirety, click here.

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Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under Blog, News