The dilemma we present here is real, told to us for your consideration. We change only names and occasionally some of the details to protect privacy of the individuals and/or organizations involved. If you have an ethical dilemma that you would like to share, please contact the editorial staff at Independent School ([email protected]).
Nathan Hale is head of the John Doe High School, an independent day school that prides itself on being a place where integrity and other core ethical values are prominent and drive the culture of the school. This does not mean that all JDH students are perfect. Recently, a couple of popular male students made a video off campus and posted it on Facebook. The video discussed members of various sports teams, ridiculing some and praising others. News of the video got around campus and soon landed on Hale’s desk. He is torn about what to do. Some faculty and parents feel the students should be reprimanded severely, while others feel a big reaction would be “sweating the small stuff.” Similarly, while some students were hurt by the comments on the film, others just shrugged it off as “no big deal.” Hale feels that action should be taken, but the severity of the discipline is the puzzle, especially since both boys are contrite about the incident. They claim that they simply got carried away with the technology, and didn’t think very hard about the video’s impact on others. Hale believes them. Neither senior wants this incident on their records for prospective colleges, and neither has any other history like this at the school.
Hale thinks long and hard about the best way to resolve this right vs. right dilemma. He is most concerned about the “justice vs. mercy” balance here. The boys have been very hard on some of their fellow students in the video and Hale wants to send a clear message that this behavior — on or off campus — is not in keeping with the school’s culture or values. On the other hand, he senses that this is an unfortunate misstep, not a trend line for these boys and that they thoroughly realize their mistake. Hale suspends the boys and sends notice to their prospective colleges, as is standard practice at his school. But he urges each boy to contact the colleges first and to explain personally before the news comes from school.
Both boys do so, and in the end, they are accepted at the college of their choice.
Copyright © 2011, Institute for Global Ethics (IGE). All future rights reserved.