Silverbrook Middle School, West Bend, Wisconsin, USA
This is the school that my friend Sarah was forced to go to for two years. The people at this school did everything they could to break her will, and to pressure, bribe, threaten and punish her into conformity. Here are a few examples. Most of what I am reporting is based on what Sarah has told me. While I can't verify all of it, what she tells me fits in with what I know about the school from talking to people at the school and in the district office. It also fits with what I know about schools in many other countries.
- The day they called her house and pressured her into going to school when she wanted to stay home. They lectured her and interrogated her on the phone. Then when she finally decided it was easier to give in to them, they lectured her more when she got to school. She was ordered to go to the Vice Principal's office. When she got there Mr. Larry Smalley lectured her some more, saying things like "We had this talk last year, Sarah". He implied that because he lectured her last year she was supposed to now automatically obey the school rules and stop trying to make decisions for herself. Sarah and I have talked many times about how hypocritical it is of schools which say they want to help students learn to take personal responsibility and become independent, yet they don't allow them the freedom to make choices. Smalley also said things like, "We expect you to come to school everyday." Sarah laughed when she told me this later and said she wanted to tell him that she "expects him" to kiss her ass. Sarah had virtualy no respect for anyone at the school, judging by what she told me about it. The longer she went there the more cynical and sarcastic she became.
- In June of 2003 Sue Milkus, one of the school counselors, threatened to have Sarah locked up again in the mental hospital if she kept missing school. In typical smarter-than-the adults-trying-to run-her life fashion, Sarah said, "Wouldn't I miss even more school then?" This is when Sue explained to her why they locked her up the year before. She said the school had Sarah locked up so it would protect the school. She Sarah questioned this, Sue explained that the school could get sued if Sarah kept missing school without the school doing anything about it. So the school's solution was to have Sarah locked up. This would show that the school was "doing something to help Sarah." When I asked Sarah if it helped her to be locked up, she said, "Not at all." She told me the day she got out she carved herself with a razor blade.
- The principal, Cindy Guell, telling Sarah and her friends that they "need to get off the floor," when they were sitting at lunch talking and not bothering anyone until the Ms. Guell came along and was bothered because of her beliefs about how "children," as Sarah and her friends were called, shouldn't sit on the floor. (See related editorial)
- Sue Milkus telling me that "Sarah enjoys being depressed."
- Sarah being forced to sit alone in a room at the school with a male police officer who was interrogating her about being raped. He called her "uncooperative" and threatened her when she didn't want to answer his questions so he could fill out his report.
- One of Sarah's friends telling me that Sue Milkus told her "she shouldn't let it bother her that her boyfriend tried to kill himself." This person said she "lost all respect" for Sue after that.
- Another of Sarah's friends telling me that she was afraid of Sue Milkus and that she reminded her of how she used to get terrified by her mother when she was five.
- Sarah and her friends telling me that Sue would threaten to kick them out of the group that was supposed to be helping them with their depression if they didn't talk about their feelings when Sue wanted them to. She also threatened to kick them out if their grades weren't high enough to please Sue.
- Sue refusing to let Sarah help another student at her former school since she didn't think Sarah was a good enough role model. Sarah lost out on the benefits which would have come from helping someone and the other student lost out on having someone he could talk honestly with and feel understood by. Sarah's former school was a religious school and Sarah is an atheist. She said the student she wanted to help was also a non-believer and non-conformist who hated the school, which I believe was St. John's Lutheran. Her father forced her to go to that school. We nicknamed it "bwp" for brainwashing place. Then we called Silverbrook, bwp2.
- The school's elaborate "merit system" which is basically a behavior modification system right out of something BF Skinner would dream of. The students were forced to carry around "merit cards" with them at all times. Teachers could ask for the card whenever they wanted. If the student didn't have the card, they were punished. The teachers would give "merits" for whatever they wanted to "reinforce." Sarah told me she got a merit for filling a teacher's water bottle once.
- Sarah's friend being threatened with not being allowed to be in the graduation ceremony if she didn't get one grade up. She was also being threatened with having to take either summer school or the repeating the whole year. Yet they still wanted her to sing in the choir for the ceremony.
- The solitary confinement room. Sarah said one of her friends was put in solitary confinement for several days at a time. This friend was one of the only ones who, along with Sarah, chose not to go to the school's graduation ceremony. The school tried to pressure everyone into going and tried to make it seem like it was such a big event in their lives.
- Sarah getting an A on a paper she told me she would have only given herself a D on. In the paper she copied the word "problematic" from a website and used it without even knowing what it meant. This shows how easily Sarah could play the part when she wanted to.
- Sarah making the honor roll without hardly even trying, yet still being lectured to and threatened for missing too many days of school.
- Sarah telling me the same thing basically everyday when I asked her how school was: boring.
- Sarah dreading going to school, not wanting to face the people there.
- Sarah being proud of herself when the school secretary told her how many days she had missed. It was something like twenty or thirty.
- The school bribing the obedient, authority-pleasing students with a day at an amusement park, Six Flags, if they got enough "merit points." But the students had to pay something like 30 dollars for this "privilege", and I am guessing the school got a group discount on the tickets and made money off of the students.
- The gym teacher making Sarah's friends cry and threatening Sarah for not willingly obeying him.
- Sarah telling me school stressed her out so much she just wanted to go do drugs after she got out many days.
- Sarah being judged for her clothing.
- Not being allowed to sleep at her desk when she was bored with classes and needed sleep.
- Being told by one of the teachers that "education is a means to an end."
- Larry Smalley telling Sarah that her punishment wasn't punishment, it was a "consequence."
- Sarah being punished and then having Larry Smalley say, "Smile, Sarah. You are enjoying this."
See a related editorial on abusive punishment
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S. Hein
July 26, 2003
affirmation cards-
putting paper on Sarah's head
book
cd
dissappointed