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Two types of school administrators: 'those who have faced a [violent] crisis and those who are about to'
By Doug Smeath
The substitute teacher was walking alone down a dark hall. She was walking from the school auditorium to the band room on Oct. 27 at Sky View High School, where she had taught many times before. Suddenly, someone who had been hiding behind a door smacked the 48-year-old substitute, JaNae Martin, with a 2-by-4 on the right side of her face, according to Deseret News article. She looked up to see a young male running away, and she heard someone say, "It's not him," the article said. She was taken to the hospital and released two days later, according to the article. Martin was a regular substitute in the Cache School District. She had worked at the Smithfield school before, and she said she'll be back. "I think there are some isolated cases," the article quoted Kirk McRae, personnel director for the district, as saying. "But overall, I think the student population here is safe, the community support is strong and it's hard to think a couple of incidents is going to turn into a trend." However, as national news continues to focus on school violence on the heels of last April's shooting and this month's internet chat room threats at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colo., September's football game brawl in Decatur, Ill., and several other incidents across the country, violence seems to be increasing in Cache Valley schools as well. Earlier in October, in an episode involving all three Cache Valley high schools. A Mountain Crest High School student with an unloaded handgun and a Sky View student with a BB gun entered Logan High School. Lights and mirrors were destroyed and the students were suspended. They now face expulsion. As violence increases in America's schools, some experts believe it's only going to get worse. "There are two types of school administrators: those who have faced a crisis and those who are about to," says Ronald D. Stephens, executive director of the National School Safety Center. Stephens declined to be interviewed, but directed questions to his web page. According to the National School Safety and Security Services Web site, at http://www.schoolsecurity.org, there have been at least 11 gun-related deaths in U.S. high schools since August 25. Stories such as these are becoming more and more commonplace in the news, but often, the day-to-day lives of typical high school students are filled with violence the public never hears about. "This huge guy threw me into a locker and backhanded me in the face," said a 17-year-old female Davis High School student who wished to remain anonymous. The incident, which she said occurred because she was believed to be gay, happened not at Davis but at an Arizona high school, just before she moved to Utah. "It's weird, because I wasn't out (as gay) to anyone, I don't look or act like the stereotypical lesbian," she said. "But somehow, the word got out, and this guy tried to kick my ass." She said she never reported the incident because she was scared people would start to talk about why it happened. "Everyone talks about Utah being all homophobic and stuff," she said. "The truth is, it's like that other places, too. I am kind of openly gay at Davis, and I get called names and stuff all the time, but no one's ever laid a finger on me." She said school violence is often a major issue for minority groups. "People just like to wail on anyone who's different," she said. Though violence is often a daily issue for students of all ages, it seems to become more of a problem as students get older. According to a 1998 study by the National Center for Education Statistics, 45 percent of elementary schools across the county reported at least one violent incident during the 1996-97 school year, compared with 74 percent of middle schools and 77 percent of high schools. The study said 10 percent of all public schools reported at least one serious violent crime, such as murder, rape, fight with a weapon or robbery. Logan's children are no strangers to violence, either. According to an incident report released by the Logan Police Department, there were 1,442 juvenile arrests in Logan in 1998. Of these, 567 were what the LPD calls "serious," such as burglary, sex offenses, drug offenses and retail theft, by far the most common serious crime among Logan youth, accounting for 236 juvenile arrests in 1998. The more violent crimes were somewhat less frequent, but by no means non-existent. In 1998, 45 juveniles were arrested for assault and 11 for weapons offenses, according to the report. Violence among youth is often attributed to the gang problem. Sixteen of 1998's reported assaults were gang-related, the LPD report said. If experts agree that school violence is a problem, they are less unanimous in what is to be done about it. "In a nutshell, I would tell you that adults focus on getting young people to be obedient," said Marvin Marshall, author of Discipline Without Stress, Rewards or Punishments, said in an interview via e-mail. "This approach often results in alienation, resistance, rebellion and even defiance." "However, if the focus is on raising responsibility, obedience is a natural by-product," he said. But Stephens' advice is different. He recommends eight steps for reducing school violence. These steps include establishing clear behavior standards, providing adequate adult presence and supervision, enforcing rules fairly and consistently and controlling access to school campuses. "Each community has the opportunity to shape the school climate it wishes to create," Stephens said. In addition, Stephens said parents and educators should be on the lookout for warning signs, hints of violent tendencies. He has created a checklist of behaviors that should serve as a warning. His checklist says children who have a history of tantrums, often resort to name-calling or cursing, display cruelty to animals or are preoccupied with weapons may be potentially violent. "These characteristics should serve to alert school administrators, teachers and support staff to address needs of troubled students," he said. The entire checklist can be found at http://www.nssc1.org/reporter/checklist.htm. Utah State University Police Department Emergency Management Coordinator Lynn Wright, a member of the Utah Safe Schools Leadership Consortium, said the important issue is not why a student becomes violent but how to prevent it. "We're discussing more some programs and issues that might help with what we can do," he said. Wright said USSLC meets about four times a year to discuss plans and programs to make Utah schools safer. USSLC, a group of educators, law enforcement officials, medical practitioners and other people from across the state, was formed by the Utah Department of Public Safety, Wright said. He said the last few meetings have been dedicated to brainstorming ideas for potential programs. Though he said he could not name any ideas they discussed until he is alerted to the results of their votes, the top ideas will be discussed in upcoming meetings and hopefully implemented, he said. "No greater challenge exists today than creating safe schools," Stephens said. "Restoring our schools to tranquil and safe places of learning requires a major strategic commitment. "Without safe schools, teachers cannot teach and students cannot
learn." |
Archived Months:
September
1998 |
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