Students tell Rochester board to prioritize mental‑health supports over phone enforcement in code of conduct review

Students urged the Rochester City School District Board of Education on March 17 to revise the district’s Code of Conduct (Policy 1400) to emphasize mental‑health supports and consistent counseling instead of focusing primarily on enforcing phone rules. Ayanna Dillard, a student at School of the Arts, and Leterias Lee Jr. delivered public comments during the required hearing.

Dillard said she developed anxiety in middle school and that, when she finally received help, it came from a teacher rather than counselors. She described a March 24, 2025 student suicide — identifying the student as Caitlin Reneta Benoit — and said the district’s response felt temporary: "For a week, the school acknowledged it, then everything went back to normal. No lasting resources, no ongoing conversations, no visible support." She added, "Phones are treated like the biggest problem... Rules without relationships are not safety."

The remarks placed mental‑health support at the center of the proposed code changes. The board chair opened the hearing by noting that Policy 1400 and education law require at least one public hearing before the board can vote on any revisions; materials and the committee’s recommended revisions are posted on the district’s public hearings page. The chair also said the code was reviewed at a March 10 work session and will be further reviewed during a work session on April 7, 2026.

Leterias Lee Jr. described moving between schools after on‑campus violence and said students need steady counselors they can trust: "We need consistency. Students should be able to have a counselor who stays with them from ninth grade to twelfth grade and doesn't switch year to year." He urged the district to support teachers and counselors who build lasting relationships with students and to avoid penalizing staff for forming those connections.

Neither student proposed specific code text changes during their remarks; both urged the board to prioritize relationship‑based interventions, restorative practices training for staff, dedicated "help zones" in each school, and continuity of counseling assignments. No motions or votes occurred during the hearing. The chair acknowledged the speakers' comments, closed the public‑comment portion of the hearing, and handled procedural items for a separate speakers' forum later that evening.

The board is scheduled to review the draft revisions again at a work session on April 7, 2026; no final vote on Policy 1400 was recorded at this hearing.