A series of disadvantages, from poverty to child abuse, still act as barriers to minority youth, Richmond County School Superintendent Dana Bedden said Monday during the 11th Annual Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Unity Award Breakfast.

As this year's keynote speaker, Dr. Bedden cited a Children's Defense Fund report that said problems such as inadequate or nonexistent health care, poor education and undiagnosed mental illnesses, among many others, often put black youths on a path away from higher education and toward criminal activity.

"The research suggests that at crucial points in their development, from birth through adulthood, more risks and disadvantages merge to create an intersection that makes a successful transition to productive adulthood significantly less likely, and involvement in the criminal justice system significantly more likely," Dr. Bedden said.

He told the crowd of city leaders and members of the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity at the Augusta Marriott Hotel and Suites that zero-tolerance policies are just one problem that harm students and that they have allowed the courts to handle infractions that once were the responsibility of the school system.

In what he called the "schoolhouse to the courthouse problem," Dr. Bedden said that while it is often necessary to seek disciplinary action against students who have behavioral problems, these actions do not solve the underlying issues. He said those students are rarely given psychological counseling, training in conflict resolution or "creative activities that might teach the appropriate behavior or increased attachment to their schools."

To loud applause, the superintendent urged the audience to be models for their children's behavior.

"Our child and youth problem is not a child and youth problem," Dr. Bedden said. "It is a profound adult problem, as our children do what they see us adults doing in our homes and professional and public lives."

Reach Adam Folk at (706) 823-3339 or adam.folk@augustachronicle.com.

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