Parents rarely appreciate labels strangers may place on their children.

“Oh, he’s a wild child.” “She is spoiled.”

It’s simply not nice to sum up a child who is not your own with a one- or two-word label. And it’s unlikely you’ll know the child well enough to accurately describe them with such a label.

Yet, the new Mississippi accountability system chooses one of seven labels for all state schools, and the majority of the labels are negative in nature.

The Natchez-Adams School District’s label is “at risk of failing.”

Sounds bad, huh?

Just like labels outsiders may place on children, there is a bit of truth to it.

Our schools aren’t what they should be and some areas do need significant attention.

But like a mother of a misunderstood wild child, those closest to our school district better understand the full picture.

And the picture isn’t all bad.

Instead of walking by, attaching a label and simply shaking our heads in disapproval, the community — the outsiders in many cases — must get closer to the situation.

We must ignore the negative label like a mother would — they are just words — and continue to do our best to raise our children to be the best they can be.

Accountability is necessary. Labels are what the current state leaders have chosen. The system is in its second year and it will most certainly change again in the future.

It’s up to the community to make sure that labels like “at risk of failing” come as constructive criticism, not as another blow to the gut.