Spotlight on America: Dads on Duty: Louisiana fathers fan out at school to prevent violence, mentor kids
SHREVEPORT, La. – An effort that started with one father's mission to stem violence at Southwood High School is morphing into a movement that dads plan to replicate on other area campuses and perhaps across America.
The resulting "Dads on Duty" message has gone viral on social platforms and national media outlets.
“We are coming out of concern, and out of love,” said Southwood High School dad Michael LaFitte.
Dads on Duty was formed in response to several fights at Southwood High School in September that ultimately left 23 students incarcerated.
"The city was overwhelmed by the number of fights that were taking place at Southwood High School, and these men stepped up to the plate and said this is something that we need to do," Shreveport City Councilwoman Tabitha Taylor said.
After a fight Sept. 17 at Southwood, LaFitte and fellow parents met to form a strategy to combat the violence.
“I decided to call a group of parents that I know who are active at the school and said, 'Hey, what can we do to get in front of this?” said LaFitte, who is also the president of the Shreveport NAACP.
In a meeting that was expected to take 45 minutes, the group came up with a plan four hours later.
“At the end of the meeting there was a group of fathers who decided to just go to the school and patrol and walk around and show a strong male presence on the campus,” LaFitte said.
“I don't care how old you are or what size you are, it's something about seeing a man, a positive male figure, a father, your daddy or whatever you want to call them, at the school. It will make you straighten up and fly right.”
The group of more than 40 fathers began its journey at Southwood before the bell at 7:30 a.m. Sept. 20.
Since then Dads on Duty have showed up every day at 7:30 a.m. to usher in students. LaFitte said they've tried to take on the persona of "cool uncles" to the students.
“We are dealing with high-schoolers, and high-schoolers want to have fun," he said. "So at the end of the day if we're looking to get something done for them, the easiest way to do it is by making them laugh.
“One of the issues that we have a lot of times with correcting children is we are not listening. We have to respect them on that level, to listen to them, because once we listen to them, they will take instruction.”
Since the arrival of Dads on Duty – they typically wear matching colored T-shirts with Dads on Duty logos – there have been no fights, LaFitte said.
He said students want approval from the dads. "They say: 'Look, Mr. LaFitte, I have a belt on today,"' he said.
“It's just the little things," LaFitte said. "We're talking to them about life skills, about grooming, about self-respect. We're listening to our young people.”
Dads on Duty have extended their patrol and are at Southwood High School in the morning, during lunch and after school, balancing work schedules with a higher calling. "Our job is to parent," Lafitte said.
"This is one of the most effective mentoring programs that I have seen up close and personal," said Shreveport Mayor Adrian Perkins. "We would like to help you all see this vision through expanding this program, not just here in Caddo Parish, but giving a strong foundation to expand all over the country."
The Dads on Duty project has attracted attention from across the U.S. CBS News covered their story last month. Since then, "Good Morning America,"The Washington Post and People magazine have done stories.
The group has launched a GoFundMe page, and it hopes to find fathers to cover every school in Caddo Parish, which includes Shreveport and several other cities, by the end of the school year, partnering with the Caddo Parish Sheriff’s Office and schools Superintendent Lamar Goree.
"There's a lot of work that goes on behind the scene," Southwood Principal Kim Pendleton said. "These wonderful men are just a forefront. There is a lot of work that happens with them, a lot of conversations that we have, conversations within the community.
"The women are behind them; I am one of them. The main thing we all have in common is that we believe in the whole child."
