Story Archive

These People Educate Our Children

The principal of Entz Elementary School in Mesa, Ariz., asked a parent to not pick up his child at the school while wearing his work clothes. The father, Scott Urkov, is an officer for the Coolidge Police Department, and other parents were getting upset that a “man with a gun” was coming to campus. Officials decided to ask the officer to stop doing that rather than ask the parents to actually think about the difference between a uniformed police officer and a crazed criminal, and who, exactly, the school should call should a crazed criminal invade the school. Urkov’s response was understandable: “Are you freaking kidding me?” Mesa Unified School District spokeswoman Helen Hollands thought Officer Urkov “took the discussion the wrong way perhaps,” and school officials decided to turn the incident into a “teachable moment” by inviting Urkov to come to the school to tell the kids about what police officers do for the community. (RC/KSAZ Phoenix) ...Suggested for students: “attendance optional.” Suggested for school and district staff: “attendance mandatory.”