The Real Cost of Prisons Weblog

Are schools arresting youth needlessly? Report says, "Yes!"
http://www.louisianaweekly.com/cgi-bin/weekly/news/articlegate.pl?20050328m

March 28, 2005

Advancement Project, a national racial justice organization, released its second report last week examining the over use of zero-tolerance school discipline policies and the growing reliance on police and juvenile courts as disciplinarians-Education on Lockdown: The Schoolhouse to Jailhouse Track.

According to the report, school districts across the U.S. have teamed up with law enforcement to create this "schoolhouse to jailhouse track" by imposing a "double dose" of punishment - suspensions or expulsions and a trip to the juvenile court - for misconduct that often does not threaten school safety.

"In school district after school district, an inflexible and unthinking zero tolerance approach to an exaggerated juvenile crime problem is derailing the educational process," said Judith Browne, Advancement Project acting co director. "The educational system is starting to look more like the criminal justice system. Acts once handled by a principal or a parent are now being handled by prosecutors and the police."

Education on Lockdown, which focused on data from school systems in Denver, Chicago, and Palm Beach County, dissects the schoolhouse to jailhouse track by examining:

* How zero tolerance, a policy originally designed to address the most serious misconduct, morphed into a "take no prisoners" approach to school discipline issues and created a direct track into the juvenile and criminal justice systems;

* The expanding role of law enforcement measures in schools; and

* The disparate impact of these practices on students of color. The report illustrates that while national school arrest data is not available, data from various districts indicate the growing trend toward using law enforcement measures to address school disciplinary matters. For example:

* Between 2000 and 2004, Denver Public Schools experienced a 71% increase in the number of student referrals to law enforcement (through tickets and arrests). Last year, most of these referrals were for non-violent behavior such as use of obscenities and disruptive appearance.

* In 2003, over 8,000 students were arrested in Chicago Public Schools. More than 40% of these arrests were for simple assault and battery - often nothing more than a threat or harmless weaponless fight.

"Our report finds that in the name of school safety, students are being needlessly arrested for non-violent acts," said Monique Dixon, senior attorney, Advancement Project. "It also finds that while students of all races, find themselves on the schoolhouse to jailhouse track, the arrest and referrals to juvenile court fall heaviest on students of color."

Additionally, the following examples illustrate the extreme reaction to minor offenses that are causing a growing number of students to be derailed into the juvenile justice system.

* Philadelphia, PA - A 10-year-old girl was handcuffed and taken to a police station for taking a pair of scissors to school. She used the scissors to work on a school project.

* Port St. Lucie, FL - A 14-year-old girl was arrested and charged with battery for pouring a carton of chocolate milk on the head of a classmate.

* Wilmington, NC - A high school student was criminally charged by a sheriff's deputy for cursing in front of a teacher.

Students of color are often disproportionately impacted by these zero tolerance school discipline practices. For example, last year in Denver, black and Latino students were referred to law enforcement at twice and seven times the rates of their white peers, respectively.

"We must have safe learning environments but, these zero-tolerance practices have gone too far. Youth are being treated like criminals for cursing, having a body piercing, and shoving matches. Our juvenile courts should not be called upon to address behavior that could be corrected in schools," concluded Dixon. "Schools should turn to school-based intervention and prevention programs and stop the schoolhouse to jailhouse track."

There have been at least three incidents involving guns at New Orleans schools in recent times: The Carter G. Woodson Middle School shooting which took place in September 2000; an April 2003 shooting at John McDonogh Senior High School that left a 15-year-old student dead and three others wounded; and this month's shooting at O. Perry Walker Senior High School that wounded a 16-year-old student.

There were reportedly four security guards and one resource officer on Walker's campus when the shooting occurred. After the March 17 shooting,

some critics said the school and its security staff did not do enough to deal with the initial conflict that had led to the fight between nearly two dozen students and subsequent shooting.

"Some school officials knew about growing tensions between rival groups of students here but chose to do nothing," a Walker teacher who spoke on condition of anonymity told The Louisiana Weekly. "When the cameras and reporters show up, everybody tries to put the best possible spin on what happened, but the truth is that this could have been avoided if [admininstrators and security personnel] had done their jobs."

Another teacher at Joseph S. Clark Senior High School who did not want to be identified said that students are increasingly being "written up" and "expelled" for minor offenses while the school system fails to address the schools' most serious issues. "It's like they're knitpicking while the house is burning down," she told The Louisiana Weekly.

Orleans Parish school system officials were unavailable to comment late last week because schools were closed for the Easter holiday.

In recent years, a number of groups have stepped up their efforts to assist schools in becoming proactive in dealing with on-campus violence. However, there is also a move to differentiate between dangerous behavior and teenage angst. While rebellion is a natural part of adolescence, rebellion that is expressed violently is neither natural nor acceptable. Keystosaferschools.com has a website that offers helpful information to educators, administrators and parents about telltale signs of potentially dangerous students. The following is posted from its website:

"The 'National School Safety Center' warns that children showing two, possibly three or more of these traits may become predisposed to violence.

1. Has tantrums and uncontrollable angry outbursts.

2. Has been truant, suspended or expelled from school.

3. Has little or no supervision and support from parents or a caring adult.

4. Prefers reading materials dealing with violent themes, rituals and abuse.

5. Characteristically resorts to name-calling, cursing or abusive language.

6. Habitually makes violent threats when angry.

7. Has previously brought a weapon to school.

8. Has a background of serious disciplinary problems.

9. Has a background of drug, alcohol or other substance abuse or dependency.

10. Has few or no close friends.

11. Is preoccupied with weapons, explosives or other incendiary devices.

12. Displays cruelty to animals.

13. Has witnessed or been a victim of neglect or abuse in the home.

14. Has been bullied and/or bullies or intimidates peers or younger children.

15. Tends to blame others for difficulties and problems they cause.

16. Consistently prefers TV shows, reading materials, movies or music expressing violent themes, rituals and abuse.

17. Reflects anger, frustration and the dark side of life in school writing projects.

18. Is involved with a gang or an antisocial group on the fringe of peer acceptance.

19. Is often depressed and has significant mood swings.

20.Has threatened or attempted suicide.