Pubdate: Tue, 23 May 2006
Source: Patriot Ledger, The (MA)
Section: Crime in Schools, a Patriot Ledger Special Report
Copyright: 2006 The Patriot Ledger
Contact: editpage@ledger.com
Website: http://ledger.southofboston.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1619
Author: Karen Eschbacher

HOW VIOLENT IS YOUR KID'S SCHOOL?

Fights, Attacks And Weapons Are Threats Even In The Suburbs

First Of Two Parts

Fifth period had just let out at Plymouth South High School when a
fight erupted in a hallway between two trash-talking teenagers. By
the time teachers could pull them apart, one of the boys was a mess.
He was taken to the hospital with a gash on his face and a possible
broken nose.

The other wound up in court, charged with aggravated assault and battery.

The April 12 incident in Plymouth is just one of hundreds of fights
and other acts of violence that take place every year at schools on
the South Shore.

A Patriot Ledger review of data submitted by 29 local school
districts about violent or criminal offenses on school property
during the 2004-2005 academic year found:

* 681 fights involving 1,394 students * 544 physical attacks or
assaults and 280 threats of physical attack * 113 weapons offenses *
Five sexual assaults and 51 cases of sexual harassment

The number of students involved in such incidents represents a
fraction of the school-aged population, and parents, students and
administrators interviewed for this story said South Shore kids have
little cause for concern when it comes to school safety.

Still, experts say even minor altercations - the kinds viewed by some
as "kids being kids" - can have a chilling effect on learning and in
some cases can escalate into more dangerous episodes if not handled properly.

When fights are allowed to take place on the campus, it diminishes
the ability of teachers to provide a safe and welcoming environment
for students," said Ronald Stephens, executive director of the
National School Safety Center. "It's just hard to learn. If you have
to watch your backside, it's hard to concentrate on algebra and geometry."

Every Grade Level

Violent incidents occurred at schools up and down the South Shore, at
every grade level. The offenses can be anything from shoving between
elementary school students during recess to blows exchanged between
older students over relationship drama.

Among high schools, the highest reported rate of physical violence
was at Holbrook Junior-Senior High School, which tallied 29 fights,
attacks or assaults last school year. That's one offense for every 20 students.

One of those students involved was Mike, a sophomore who admitted
getting into a "crazy fight" after another student snitched to police
about trouble he caused outside of school.

I hit his head off the wall in the bathroom," he said.

Mike, who would not allow his last name to be used, said he was never
caught for the restroom brawl, but was slapped with a three-day
suspension when he tangled with the student's friend the next day.

Such stories notwithstanding, several Holbrook students said violence
is not a big problem at the school.

You see your occasional fight, but we have a good group of faculty
and staff, and they handle it well and take action very quickly,"
said Brian Stone, a 17-year-old senior.

Added Jenna Mumme, another senior: "There's more verbal fights than
anything else. They get handled quickly."

From Scuffles To Brawls

While some fights or attacks end with injuries - like the one earlier
this year at Plymouth South - the overwhelming majority do not,
administrators said.

Mary Dorey, a nurse at Weymouth High School, said fights seldom
require medical attention, and even then it's typically for a bloody
nose or scratches.

In fact, some incidents are so minor they barely qualify as physical
altercations, said Rockland High Principal Stephen Sangster.

If someone throws a pencil and hits the kid we call it an assault,"
said Sangster, whose school reported 11 fights and 36 attacks or
assaults last year. "It doesn't mean the pencil hit the kid and hurt
the kid. ... An assault is whenever someone does something to another person."

---------
[Inset box]

Crime In The Corridor

During the 2004-2005 school year, 29 South Shore schools districts reported

1,225 Fights, attacks or assaults
280 Threats of physical attack
197 Incidents of property crime, such as theft or vandalism
113 Weapons offenses
51 Incidents of sexual harassment
5 Sexual assaults
Source: Department of Education
---------

Rockland High senior Christine Patterson said fights in school are
rare. When students do tangle, she said, it's often girls doing the
fighting, as was the case with one recent dustup.

By the end of it they were both on the floor," Patterson, 18, said.
There were teachers trying to separate them. One of the girls got
loose and smacked the other in the face with her purse."

Still, serious incidents occasionally occur.

At Randolph High School, for example, a series of fights broke out
inside and outside of school one day this past February, apparently
over a stolen iPod. Six people - including three students - were
arrested, and police say a billy club and box cutter were used as weapons.

In another incident at Randolph High earlier this school year, four
girls allegedly attacked a 16-year-old female student in the hallway,
leaving the victim with a laceration that took more than two dozen
stitches to close.

Weapons In Schools

Weapons also make their way into South Shore schools.

Local administrators reported 83 offenses involving knives or cutting
weapons on school property last academic year, including four in
elementary schools and 21 in middle schools or junior high schools.

Plymouth North High School reported the most weapons offenses: nine
involving knives and one involving what was classified as "other firearm."

As with assaults, administrators stressed that students were not
necessarily in danger as a result of the incidents.

Cathy MacLeod, the principal of Bryantville Elementary School in
Pembroke, said her school reported a case in which a boy accidentally
brought a knife to school after using it while fishing. The boy
notified his teacher as soon as he realized the mistake.

No one was ever in harm's way, but the school still treated the
incident seriously, MacLeod said.

There is zero tolerance for possession of anything that could be
perceived as a weapon," she said.

Violence And Learning

Although the number of violent incidents at South Shore schools is
not altogether alarming, experts say the presence of fights and
weapons on campus - no matter how minor or infrequent - is always
cause for concern.

In some cases, fears of being bullied or injured are enough to keep
kids away from the classroom. In 2003, the most recent year for which
data was available, 5 percent of Massachusetts high school students
said they skipped school in the previous 30 days because they felt
unsafe, according to a state survey.

Even when kids do make it to class, students who get mixed up in
fights or other violent episodes take an academic hit.

Roughly 73 percent of high school students involved in a fight on
school property received grades of C or better, the 2003 survey
found. By comparison, 89 percent of students who weren't involved in
school scuffles earned marks in that range.

Similar trends were true of students who were bullied at school six
or more times, or who were threatened or injured with a weapon at school.

Until such problem behavior is addressed, there will always be
students who suffer academically and emotionally, experts said.

You want a classroom and a school where everyone feels safe," said
Thomas Cottle, an education professor at Boston University. "Nobody
does well in an unsafe environment.

School after school I visit, it is near the top of the lists of
counselors, principals, assistant principals," he added. "People are
deeply concerned about it."

[Sidebar]

From Peer Mediation To Increased Security, Schools Use Variety Of
Ways To Keep Kids Safe

Two students at Holbrook Junior-Senior High School were exchanging
words recently when their disagreement turned physical.

Afterwards, they were brought together to patch things up.

But rather than hash out their problems with administrators, the
students' peace-making session was led by high school classmates.

Holbrook this year became the latest school to offer peer mediation
as a way to prevent verbal spats from boiling over.

"Since we're high school kids we might be going through the same
thing or we experienced it before, so we can be on the same page,"
said Abdoul Dyfan, a sophomore who was among a group of students
trained as mediators.

Whether it's peer mediation, increased security or tough discipline
policies, South Shore administrators say they use a host of
approaches to keep schools safe.

At Weymouth High School, Michael Salvi patrols the halls along with
three other security staff members. In addition to keeping kids
moving in the hallway and stopping students who aren't where they're
supposed to be, the security team tries to head off fights and
responds when a problem breaks out.

"If we get a call, it takes - tops - 10 to 15 seconds to get to that
location," said Salvi, the school district's security liaison.

The school also has 128 cameras mounted inside and outside the
building, allowing officials to review any incidents that might take place.

Senior Samantha Blair said the extra security makes a difference.

"When I was in eighth grade it was real bad," Blair, 18, said. "It's
gotten so much better."

So far this year, there have been 16 assaults and batteries, 14
"altercations" and 62 fights.

Pamela Gould, the principal at Whitman-Hanson Regional High School,
said her school's strict discipline policies help dissuade students
from throwing punches.

Any violent offense buys an automatic five-day suspension, longer for
a second offense.

"We've made a decision that it is important to send the message that
this is without a question inappropriate," she said.

In Holbrook, administrators and students agree peer mediation works.

Stephen Eshner, 17, a junior and one of the mediators, said he used
to see fights, but now students are encouraged to sit down with
mediators at the first hint of conflict.

As a result, he said, physical confrontations are rare.

"There have been a few where you can tell if we didn't stop it at
that point ... it would escalate to a fight and they would be at risk
of being suspended," Eshner said.

[Sidebar #2]

It Isn'T Just Textbooks That Get Lifted In School

Some local students apparently have sticky fingers.

South Shore schools reported 132 thefts of school, student or staff
property during the 2004-2005 academic year.

Administrators said items were most often taken from unlocked
lockers, and that everything from clothing to high-priced iPod music
players went missing.

"The students here in Cohasset are extremely trusting," said Joel
Antolini, principal of Cohasset Middle School-High School. "Many of
them do not put a lock on their locker."

While students were the most frequent targets, teachers and other
staff lost out, too. In fact, South Shore school personnel were the
victims of theft 50 times last academic year, compared to 65 students.

At Cohasset Middle High School, 12 staff members had belongings
taken. Antolini said he could not speak about what happened last year
because he only took over the school's top job this school year.

All thefts are reported to police, he said.

At Hingham High School, which tallied 10 thefts last academic year,
iPods are among the more commonly stolen items. The digital music
players can cost as much as $400.

Principal Paula Girouard McCann said thefts are reported to police if
it is "something of great value."

"We have a school resource officer who's very instrumental in
recovering things," she said.

Aside from thefts, schools reported dozens of other cases of property
crime: There were 56 vandalism offenses and nine incidents in which
school property was destroyed by arson.

In January, a former Stoughton High School student was charged with
driving a school van into the field house wall and tearing up the
school's athletic field. Damage was estimated at $100,000.

Three juveniles were charged with vandalizing school buses at
Chandler Elementary School in Duxbury last summer. Around the same
time, Scituate schools endured a spate of vandalism, including a
broken window at Cushing Elementary School and graffiti at two school
buildings.

State Requires Reporting

The Department of Education requires schools to file a report with
the state each time an incident involving drugs, violence or criminal
activity takes place on school property.

There are 31 infractions that must be reported, from fighting and
handgun possession to sexual harassment and marijuana use.

In response to a public records request, the Department of Education
provided The Patriot Ledger with documents detailing offenses
reported by every South Shore school during the 2004-2005 school
year. Information about the number of victims and offenders involved
was also supplied.

In some cases, a single incident could have been counted as an
offense in more than one category. For example, a fight involving a
knife could be recorded as both a physical fight and a weapons offense.

The state considers an event to have occurred on school property not
only if it took place on the actual campus, but also on a school bus
or at a place where a school-sponsored event was held.

The Patriot Ledger calculated rates for certain offenses based on a
school's enrollment. To simplify the data, similar offenses were
combined into one category. For instance, knife, gun and other
weapons offenses were taken together to determine an overall rate for
weapons violations.

Several administrators noted that schools that are particularly
vigilant when dealing with and reporting violent or illegal behavior
would show a higher offense rate than schools that are less
aggressive in enforcing policies.

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