Colleton County Schools launch ‘Dads on Duty,’ ‘Moms on a Mission’

WALTERBORO, S.C. (WCSC) - The Colleton County School District is launching new programs to bring positive community role models into the schools.

The programs are called “Dads on Duty” and “Moms on a Mission.”

Colleton County School District Safety and Security Coordinator Wesley McNeely says it’s inspired by a program in Louisiana that went viral on the internet.

McNeely says he has talked to the original school that started the program. He says they implemented Dads on Duty after a number of fights in the schools.

The Colleton County School District wants to kick off the program to prevent its schools from ever reaching that point.

“We’d like to see the community start to grow into the school system,” McNeely said. “So, it becomes intertwined where your community growth is based on your school growth. And the stronger we make the schools, the stronger we make the community.”

McNeely says they realize not all kids have positive role models in their lives, especially not male role models.

He says they want to show kids there are people in their lives who want them to be successful who are not their teachers or administrators.

Volunteer fathers and mothers from the community will receive gang awareness training, learn about de-escalation strategies, and develop techniques to create a positive environment in the classrooms.

“They crack the dad jokes, they cut up with kids, and they build a relationship through the humor and being around and being involved,” McNeely said. “At the same time, they’re like, ‘hey take your hat off for me,’ and everybody’s like oh yeah, my fault.”

McNeely says they aren’t capping the volunteers at a certain number. He says they would like to have the volunteers in the schools everyday, but hope to have enough where parents can rotate days and times.

The interest meeting to be a Dad on Duty or a Mom on a Mission is Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. at the Colleton County School District Boardroom.

McNeely says they’ve already had parents reach out, as well as some area churches.

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