Does This Shreveport, Louisiana School Need a Branch of ‘Dads on Duty’?

Earlier this year, a massive brawl broke out at Shreveport's Southwood High School. That mid-September fight ended up with 14 arrests and the formation of 'Dads on Duty'.  The group of dads came together to help stop the violence and have a positive impact. Well, seemingly, another local school could use their help.

Could This Shreveport School Use Their Own Branch of Dad's On Duty?

A local school is catching some heat due to a public Instagram page allegedly showing fights between students at Broadmoor STEM Academy. The page had 5 fights between students posted. However, since this article was originally published, the Instagram page has been removed.

The videos were are all shot on student's cell phones and involve fights between boys and girls all differing in ages at the school. These videos bring back memories of the near-daily fight videos we would see coming out of Southwood High School earlier in the year before Dads on Duty stepped in. It seems this school could use some help from the Dads as well.

Are School Fights Becoming Too Common in Shreveport?

Though there is no clear timeline for these videos they seem to have taken place throughout the entire school year. Some were stopped by teachers, so it seems disciplinary action would have already been enacted on the students. An official from Caddo Parish Schools reached out to us and confirmed that they are aware of fights at Broadmoor STEM and addressing the issue.

There is no question that Shreveport has a violence problem, and the unfortunate reality is that many of these fights both stemmed from problems outside of school or continued outside of school. After this year, it's also pretty clear that this is a wide spread problem facing educators at multiple schools in the area. Teaching kids to resolve problems in a non-violent manner is important. 

What Can Be Done to Stop Fights at Shreveport Schools?

Seeing these fights posted on a public social media platform is shocking, and obviously need to be addressed. I'm sure some parents would be concerned to see their children, who shouldn't be old enough to have social media accounts, fighting on camera at school.

Clearly, this is an issue at several Shreveport area schools and beyond. Dad's on Duty seemingly have had a positive influence at all the schools they are involved at. So, maybe our area (and schools across the country) can use more positive influences to reduce violent behavior and build conflict resolution and good habits. Teachers and educators as a whole do a tremendous job trying to set good habits for children.

However, they can't do it all on their own. And sometimes outside forces like Dads on Duty, coaches or whoever, can bring a new perspective and additional reinforcement to the situation.