FIVE CHEERS: GOVERNMENT CHECKUP
The hard life lessons of youth offenders can have an invaluable impact on teens.
That’s why Duval County School Board member Betty Burney’s book, If These Chains Could Talk, is such a worthy investment.
It will cost $10 per copy to get the book into the curriculum for Duval’s more than 20,000 eighth- and ninth- grade students.
The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office recently pledged $25,000 of forfeited and confiscated drug money toward that end.
The Jacksonville Children’s Commission donated $1,000.
More donations are needed.
There are many poignant entries in the book, including this one from Josh L.
“I was trying to fit in with older people and that is what got me here at age 13 for first-degree murder and armed robbery. I wish I would have stayed in school and listened to my grandmother.”
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Betty Seabrook Burney represents District 5 and joined the Duval County School Board in November 2004. She is a Raines High School graduate, holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Miami and a Master of Arts in Public Administration from Northern Illinois University. Currently, Ms. Burney is an education consultant for TPG, Inc., and Seabrook and Associates. She is a member of the NAACP Education Committee, Wayman Chapel AME Church and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority. 
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