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November 17, 2009

Dads on the watch at East Side

By Nathan Straus

nstraus@jacksonvilleprogress.com



East Side Elementary School in Jacksonville will start a new school program called Watch D.O.G.S. (Dads Of Great Students) with a “Dads and Kids” pizza night. The event will take place from 6:30-7:30 p.m. Dec. 1.

Chuck Lowery, East Side principal, said the pizza night will launch the project designed to invite fathers to the campus to make it a safer place and to mentor students.

“Pizza night is a good way to get dads here, give moms a night off and talk man to men,” Lowery said.

He urged anyone with a child at East Side to attend the pizza night. Lowery said there are around 690 students at the school and he’d love to see at least 50 percent representation from fathers and father figures. He also said they do not have to attend the pizza night to be a part of WATCH D.O.G.S.

According to Lowery, the idea for the program originally came to him during his time at Hawkins Elementary School. He said a representative from Kilgore Intermediate School informed him about the program and it seemed like a great idea.

“Dads volunteered for reading with kids and to keep an eye out on school premises,” Lowery said. “The kids had a positive male role model.”

The program began around 10 years ago, he added, and has since spread to 37 states and well over 1,000 schools. It’s even international, and has reached as far as New Zealand.

A press release from the school said it was started as a response to the Jonesboro, Ark., shooting.

“Some students do not have a father figure present in their home and the number of male teachers has been steadily declining in recent years,” the release stated. “More positive male role models are needed in the school setting. Fathers and father figures can spend meaningful time with their students in the school setting and gain a greater awareness of the positive impact they can have on their student’s life, just by being a ‘dad.’”

Lowery said issues such as school safety and the memory of school shootings such as Jonesboro and Columbine still linger in the back of residents’ minds, and it’s at the front of the minds of school officials. In addition, he said there is an academic benefit associated with having a strong father figure close at hand.

“It’s a way to give dads an idea of how to help their kids be successful academically,” Lowery said.

At the event, there will be a 30-minute period of meeting other fathers and enjoying some pizza. From 7-7:30 p.m., there will be a presentation. A representative from Kilgore Intermediate School will be in attendance to speak about the program as well, Lowery said.

“If the fathers have a child at East Side, we’d love to see them here,” he said.

Lowery can be contacted for more information at 903-586-5146.

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