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Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Dirty dancing: Not at school.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The first-year superintendent of the school system in Argyle, Texas, has become something of a national figure for his stand in banning what would strike me as dirty dancing, something known as “grinding” or “freak dancing.”
The superintendent, Jason Ceyanes, 35, is accused by some parents of ruining an October homecoming dance at Argyle’s high school by insisting on a dress code and by banning the hip-hop inspired dance form. “This is not just shaking your booty,” Ceyanes told The Wall Street Journal. “This is pelvis-to-pelvis physical contact in the private areas …and then moving around.”
Ceyanes told The Dallas Morning News that “if you’re simulating sexual acts and you’re touching, you’re not creating an environment that’s conducive to learning… As we are defining who we are, we want to maintain the highest standards possible.”
Some students and parents are angry, attacking Ceyanes while publicizing aspects of his private life — that, for example, he has been divorced and was a father at 17. They insist the problem is a generation gap. After one student declared at a school meeting on the dispute that teens are dancing the only way they know how, Ceyanes appointed a deputy to recruit instructors from local dance studios to demonstrate acceptable dance forms for high school gatherings. Another school dance has been scheduled for this month.
Schools and school-sponsored functions should be places where the adults are in charge — and where they determine and enforce appropriate forms of dress and behavior. On the job, Ceyanes is what every school principal should be. Give him a raise and extend his contract.
