Students want more support, fewer cops in Chicago schools

Group contends discipline in CPS schools is uneven and counterproductive
BY ROSALIND ROSSI, EDUCATION REPORTER
Chicago Sun-Times
Updated: 07-15-2011 9:23 am

A Chicago Public School student was arrested and hauled to the police station for writing his nickname on his desk.

Other kids have been sent home on suspension for packing cell phones or wearing jeans instead of navy uniform pants.

Too often, a group of students contended Thursday, discipline in CPS schools is "harsh," uneven and counterproductive, with adults jumping to punish students for minor infractions instead of trying to understand or help them.

"Our schools don't need more security guards and cops. ... They need more resources," said Gage Park High School senior Pamela Lewis. "CPS is spending our money in the wrong places."

Lewis and other student members of Voices of Youth in Chicago Education, or VOYCE, demanded Thursday that CPS rewrite the Student Code of Conduct - and let them help. They accused the deficit-ridden system of misplaced priorities for spending $51 million a year on school-based security guards but only $3.5 million on school-based college and career coaches.

Among their recommendations:

- End suspensions for minor offenses that pose no threat to student safety, such as carrying a cell phone, tardiness or violating dress codes.
- Replace some out-of-school suspensions of up to 10 days with in-school suspensions of no more than three days that would include academic or other help.

- Require principals to get district approval for any suspension of more than five days, to ensure evenness of discipline across schools.

The students said CPS should pour more money into counselors, social workers and peer juries that support kids, rather than security guards and police that make them feel like criminals.

The new, much higher, $25 million price tag for two police officers per CPS high school would be better spent on "social and emotional supports for kids" said Stephanie Mayo, who graduated in June from Roosevelt High. Though she was her school's valedictorian, Stephanie said the cops at Roosevelt made her feel like a criminal because when she walked past them, they would "ask me questions as if I was doing something wrong."

The ready presence of cops in schools can lead to arrests for minor infractions that could otherwise be handled solely by school officials, students said. They pointed to research indicating arrested students are 50 percent more likely to drop out of school.

Roosevelt High alum Jose Briceno, who wants to be an art teacher, said his arrest last year for writing his nickname on his desk three years earlier amounted to overkill.

It came after an investigation of school graffiti by someone else, who led officials to determine that a "tag," or nickname, left on a desk three years earlier was his handiwork, the 19-year-old said.
"I offered to clean it," said Jose, who described his tagging as the work of a frustrated artist who would have benefitted at the time from art classes. "They could have said, 'Let me help you out.' Instead they said, 'Let me arrest you.' "

Jose's account of the episode could not immediately be confirmed with school officials.

New Schools CEO Jean-Claude Brizard "feels very passionately" about the student discipline issue and "is committed" to reducing suspensions at CPS, just as he did in his previous role as schools superintendent in Rochester, N.Y., wrote CPS spokeswoman Becky Carroll in an e-mail. She added that CPS is currently working on changes to the Student Code of Conduct.

Mo. teachers say schools will miss resource officers

Two resource officers could be cut to save money
BY CATHERINE MARTIN
Columbia Daily Tribune (Missouri)
Updated: 06-17-2011 8:43 am

Columbia Public Schools is considering cutting two school resource officers at the intermediate level, but some teachers are concerned about leaving only one officer for six middle and junior high schools.

The district and the Columbia Police Department share the cost of the school resource officer, or SRO, program, but next year, the district will have to pay for officers' benefits, which is a 44 percent increase in cost per officer. The district would save more than $52,000 if it cuts the officers.

Some teachers say the move would decrease their feeling of safety and prevent officers from building positive relationships with students. And the police department says the program has another benefit. After a reorganization in February, resource officers now report to the juvenile investigations sergeant. That allows SROs to be the eyes and ears in the schools.

"In the schools, they are that first line," said investigations Lt. Ken Gregory. "They are there taking that initial report and doing a lot of the legwork for the things that happen in the schools and don't happen in the school."

By recognizing who students associate with, resource officers observe and share those observations with the department's vice, narcotics and organized crime unit and the major case squad.

Though gangs in Columbia are loosely organized, Gregory said some students begin associating with them at the junior high level. Resource officers can compile a "wealth of information."
At Jefferson Junior High School, Principal Gregery Caine said students often feel comfortable confiding in the school's officer, Melvin Buckner, about incidents going on outside of school.

"Although the SRO has a big impact between the hours of 7:30 and 3:15 when we're here, there are a lot of things going on outside of those hours and on the weekend that students know about, see or experience, and they bring those issues back to us every day," he said.

Overall, the program has been beneficial to the school in helping maintain safety, promote community and develop positive relationships, Caine said. Oakland Junior High School Principal Kim Presko agreed.

At Oakland, Presko said Officer Linda Fincham has helped teach first aid, brought a new perspective to government classes, talked with students about drugs and alcohol, and helped staff be on the lookout for students who might be in trouble.

But not everyone sees SROs as a positive step for public schools. Boone County Sheriff's Department Detective Tom O'Sullivan, who formerly was involved with the program, said public schools have set low expectations for student conduct and that has created a situation that can't be controlled without the help of law enforcement.

"I've made the comparison time and time again. If you look at private and faith-based schools, you don't see an SRO in those institutions, and I think it's because they have a higher expectation for what type of behavior is going to be tolerated," O'Sullivan said.

Many, including Superintendent Chris Belcher, still highlight the positive relationships the program helps officers build with kids. Belcher said he is concerned about cutting more officers -- the district cut three at the intermediate level last year -- but the cost of SROs is rising,. and financial times are tight.
"This is just what's going to happen as our budget continues to be constrained," he said.

The Columbia Board of Education is expected to vote on the 2011- 12 budget, which includes $1.8 million in cuts, at its work session next Thursday.

Tribune reporter Brennan David contributed to this story.

Copyright 2011 Columbia Tribune. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

This article was published on page A10 of the Thursday, June 16, 2011 edition of The Columbia Daily Tribune with the headline "Teachers say schools will miss officersDistrict looking to cut 2 SROs.." Click here to Subscribe.