Dads Become Watch DOGS at Local Elementary Schools

By Melissa Maynarich, NEWS 9

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Dads in Oklahoma City are trading in overtime for quality time. These father volunteers are visiting their child's school for a day to help out through a program called Watch DOGS.

The program has been running in some Putnam City schools for about five years, and this school year it just began at Will Rogers Elementary.

The elementary school has gone to the dogs, but that doesn't mean it's taken a turn for the worse. Instead, these "DOGS," or "Dads Of Great Students" you could call them, are making class time better.

From tutoring kids to monitoring hallways between class time, these fathers, grandfathers and even uncles are helping out, but mostly, their presence inside of the school and out is for security.

“We want to make sure that we're visible to the public, to the children, walking around the campus, checking doors,” said top Watch Dog Steven Jones.

The Watch DOGS program began in Jonesboro, Arkansas in response to a 1998 middle-school shooting. A concerned father came up with the idea.

“He basically just asked himself, along with other people, how this could have happened. Well, the way it could happen was the lack of presence by fathers,” Jones said.

Now, fathers on the campus' of Putnam City schools are making a difference not only for security but also when it comes to providing positive male role models.

“In the past we've always had mainly moms coming into our classrooms and helping. And this is another way to show the children that the other parents, the dads, value education too,” 1st grade teacher Lisa Newman said.

The response from dads has been overwhelming at Will Roger's Elementary. At the initial meeting, leaders expected 30-40 dads, instead 110 showed up.