\For the Natchez-Adams School District’s new discipline plan to work, many teachers have said everyone is going to have to &uot;buy into it.&uot;

District officials say they hope the plan will cut down on school suspensions by teaching children better behavior.

&uot;Teachers have to be willing to buy into this and actually put it in place and work with the system in order for it to work,&uot; said Gloria Warren, a teacher at the Central Alternative School.

The new program takes students through several steps such as time out and in-school detention before sending students who would otherwise be suspended to a Positive Choices program.

Positive Choices is a restricted program where students can continue their class work plus receive behavior modification.

District officials also hope the plan will keep students who are suspended from falling behind in their class work.

Warren was one of several teachers who served on a district committee to develop the new plan. She said her fellow teachers at Central Alternative School favor the changes.

&uot;I got full support from the teachers at Central School,&uot; Warren said. &uot;We have to teach the children how to behave now.&uot;

Warren said she she has already seen how the new plan can be effective by using similar methods at her school.

At Central School, teachers have cut back on the number of students being suspended or being placed in detention by providing character training, Warren said.

So she said she believes using punishments other than suspension will help students learn better behavior.

&uot;By suspending them we’re not addressing the problem, and you have to address the problem to correct the behavior,&uot; she said.

Committee member and Natchez Middle School teacher Mary Higgs said she thinks the new plan will keep administrators from having to deal with as many discipline problems and will give teachers more freedom in their classrooms.

&uot;It’s going to take some work because anything new will,&uot; Higgs said. &uot;But I&160;think it is a good program.&uot;

Higgs said she has heard of this type of plan working in bigger cities like Detroit.

&uot;I feel like if it works in inner cities, why can’t it work here?&uot; she said.

The plan allows teachers to deal with minor problems, such as student not doing their work, but if a student is causing a great disruption they can automatically be sent to the principal, she said.

The plan also makes students responsible for doing all their work instead of getting zeros or no grades for work missed because of discipline problems, Higgs said.

But some teachers are worried about the plan.

Higgs said she thinks teachers are afraid the plan is not going to &uot;backed up.&uot;

Teachers have seen new plans come and go and some fear they will not get the upper-level support they need to handle discipline problems, she said.