751 OFFENSES RECORDED IN CITY SCHOOLS LAST YEAR

Illegal drug possession was the most common offense recorded in
Memphis City Schools last year, according to the district's behavior
data.

Possession accounted for a significant portion of the 751 reported
incidents.

Schools reported incidents under six categories, including possession
of firearms, battery against teachers or staff, possession of weapons
other than firearms and possession of alcohol.

Northside High School led the way with 42 total incidents reported in
2005-06. Of those, 30 incidents were drug related.

High schools reported the most incidents, a fact reflected in 51 of
the 60 new campus monitors being sent to high schools.

District officials cross-referenced last year's behavior data with
initial incident numbers from the first few weeks of school to make
the decision about where to put the new monitors, said chief academic
officer Alfred Hall.

Last school year was the first time the district collected such
extensive records on violations as part of its Blue Ribbon behavior
initiative.

"Our reporting is better now than ever before," he said. "The power
of the information we have now puts us in a place to isolate areas of
major incidents and put effective strategies in place."

Hall said the numbers don't provide a complete picture of what a
school may look like today, but are a valuable reference in tailoring
intervention programs to a school's specific needs.

"We have the expectation that kind of behavior is not supported and
will not be tolerated in Memphis City Schools," he said. "We think
any incident is one too many."