Dr. Willie J. Greer Kimmons, Guest Commentary
“Who is raising our children?” “Who is teaching our children?” “Who is protecting our children?”
“Where are the parents, grandparents and/or significant adults in the household?” Who is to blame for our children’s behavior?
God did not make dumb children. God did not make bad children. We, as adults, made bad and dumb children, because our children imitate adult behavior, good or bad.
According to the sheriff in Volusia County, Florida, “Threats, school shootings, teen crimes are five times higher than they were last year at this time. It is obvious that public embarrassment is not working to get our children’s attention.” We, now, must realize that a lack of parental involvement, mass media, and peer pressure plays an important role in the lives of our children. Teen mental health and suicide are the second leading causes of death for youths between the ages of 13-19 years old. 22 teenagers are shot every day in this country. Gun shots are the leading cause of death for teenagers in America, many are shot with assault weapons.
According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC) in 2023, gun violence and deaths increased for children under 18. Parents should not have to worry that when they send their child to school, their child may be the next victim of a mass shooting. Children should not be able to easily access firearms in their households, creating an opportunity for them to harm themselves or others. Children in our country are facing the brunt of the American gun violence epidemic. Gun violence and threats are the number one cause of death for children and teens in America. Law makers and concerned citizens who refuse to tackle this deadly crisis are failing our children. We must do better.
Recently, we have had a different type of family structure. We have 25- and 30-year-old grandmothers. According to AARP and the rise of the baby boomer age, there are now some 70 million grandparents in the United States. Florida has about 8 million grandparents raising their grandchildren. In many cities, we have children raising children.
In addition, today our family lifestyles are different in how we try to relate and raise our children. Many parents want to be their children’s friend or running buddy. Children are being raised early in life as young adults. The way their parents allow them to dress and very little, if any, rules are carried out in the household. It does not matter if the parents in these homes are rich or poor.
Today’s parents are in desperate need to be assisted in rearing their children. It will take a concerted effort from several sources to build this partnership. Home, school, church, and community are key ingredients to help save our children and save our schools.
As a community leader, author, public servant, and career educator, I have conducted more than 500 presentations. These workshops were for parents, grandparents, schools, and communities. The workshops included suggestions and solutions to help save our children and save our schools. The first book is titled, (1) A Parenting Guidebook. It outlines the role of schools, families, and communities in assisting parents with rearing their children. This guidebook has useful strategies, suggestions, and recommendations for concerned citizens who are interested in the growth and development of children. (2) The second book, a Parenting Forever Workbook, involves training for parents, grandparents, community, and civic groups. It outlines a step-by-step process providing guidelines for building and developing productive and successful children named the “Troubled-at-risk Youth Diversion Alternative Program” (TYDAP) for parents.
Through referrals by the State Attorney’s Office, Juvenile Justice System, and the Department of Children and Families, parents and their children would be assigned based on the individual needs of the child. It is important to address our children’s problems while they are young. We must assist them as they grow older to become crime-free and productive members of society. The TYDAP for parents, grandparents, and/or significant adult in the household will be held on three Saturdays, 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. They will be provided with useful strategies, suggestions, and helpful recommendations on how to become better parents. There are 7 detailed training modules for parents to participate in during the 3 Saturdays. It does not matter if the parent is rich or poor, young, old, married, or single, formally educated or not. That adult is the most important person to the child.
The workbook training is designed to form a working relationship/partnership between the home, Sheriff’s Department, Juvenile Justice System, Department of Children and Families, and the State Attorney’s Office. This workshop is designed to hold parents, grandparents, and/or significant adults in the household accountable for their children’s behavior and actions in our community. Successful completion of the TYDAP occurs when parents have met the 3 Saturday requirements, and the child has remained crime free. This diversion program is different than programs geared toward the juvenile, because this program is primarily for the parent.
The three Saturday training sessions required are to teach parents how to assume full responsibility for their children’s actions. Having a partnership through a collaborative effort with the Department of Juvenile Justice endorsed by the State Attorney’s Office is necessary for the program to be successful. This program serves as an alternative to incarceration for troubled at-risk youths, male and female, 17 years and under.
Raising children can be challenging in many ways. Caring for children and teens can take quite a bit of time and attention. All of us have heard that it takes a village to raise a child. Therefore, it is necessary to have patience, compassion, love, and support for all children. Please remember Proverbs 22nd and 6, “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he shall not depart from it.” Early intervention is vital when working and providing for children. It allows one to have options with their safety and security. Parents should have a personal and moral obligation to do what is in the best interest of their children, because children did not ask to be born.
“Save our children, save our schools. Never, ever, give up on our children, because our children are our greatest resource. Our children are an extension of us and our children are our future.”
Stay in prayer, stay healthy, and stay safe. God bless all of us with raising our precious children.
Dr. Willie J. Greer Kimmons, Former Classroom Teacher, Superintendent of Schools, Former College Professor, College President, College Chancellor, Public Servant, Community Leader, Viet Nam Military Veteran, and Author, Founder, President/CEO, Save Children Save Schools, Inc., 1653 Lawrence Circle, Daytona Beach, FL 32117, Cell: (386)451-4780 and Email: wjkimmons@aol.com and www.savechildrensaveschools.com.