Critics wrong; Greenbrier principal earns praise

Editor:

As vice president of the senior class at Greenbrier High School, I am appalled at the immaturity and total lack of respect that parents and the media have given Greenbrier. Sundays letter by Charlie Johnson absolutely disgusted me, and showed that he was misinformed about the situation.

To answer Johnsons question about why Principal Dr. Sandra Carraway is still in her current position, there is no other person who is better qualified than she is. I feel honored, blessed and extremely fortunate to have been under Carraways leadership this past year. Johnson also questioned why Carraway had not contacted him or any other concerned parents. At the beginning of the week of May 5, Carraway sent a letter to all parents of Greenbrier students informing them, as much as the law allowed her to, of the recent occurrences at our school.

I would also like to know why Johnson believes the cover-up is getting out of hand. In actuality, there has never been any attempt by school officials to cover up the incident. In her letter, Carraway informed parents that the administration was in contact with the parents of the students involved in each of the cases. Police contact was not made after the first incident, only because there was not enough evidence. However, the incident was fully investigated and parent contact was made. As soon as the next incident was reported and verified, the Columbia County Sheriffs Office was contacted and action was taken against the suspect.

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I agree with Johnson that there should be some type of apology given to the entire school - from the suspect for his actions, not from Carraway or the administration. As a student, I feel Greenbrier is a safe and proficient learning environment, but at times when I had concerns about something negative, the administration looked into the situation and took correct disciplinary action if needed.

In fact, I spent more than 40 hours job-shadowing Carraway for my senior project, and never once witnessed her making a mockery of the very same rules she swore to uphold, as Johnson wrote. The only joke is that the media and Johnson have accused the Greenbrier administration of trying to sweep all this under the rug.

As a female student, I respect and feel confident in any and all decisions that our principal makes. The school might not be hers, but she has made it the great place that it has become. At Greenbrier we consider ourselves a family and are not represented by one individual. Nothing has been destroyed - not Carraway nor our student body. I commend her for a job well done and give her two thumbs up!

Britney Graham

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