BY CHRISTINE WOLFF
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Larry Martin, 17, a senior at Holmes High School, wears a required clear book bag.
(Ryan Miller photo)
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See-through book bags, a higher police presense, hot lines to report threats and toughened student-handbook language will greet Tristate students this fall -- a response, educators say, to last spring's string of fatal school shootings nationwide.
It was peaceful last spring in Tristate schools, yet not uneventful.
Local educators dealt with a rash of minor incidents -- guns found in backpacks and lockers, a joke hit-list threatening people and an elaborate fake scheme to explode seven bombs -- that brought a sigh of relief as schools closed.
School officials spent time this summer working to assure a safer, less eventful 1998-99 school year.
"With the spring we had, we put it higher on the priority list. I certainly feel more of a focus on school security this year than any other," said Superintendent Dennis Devine of West Clermont schools, where two students were expelled last spring for bringing guns to school.
Nationally, 11 children and two teachers died in five school shootings last school year -- all with guns fired by other children -- in Pearl, Miss.; Jonesboro, Ark., West Paducah, Ky.; Edinboro, Pa.; and Springfield, Ore.
"What happened this year was a wake-up call," said Peter D. Blauvelt, president of the National Alliance for Safe Schools. "It happened in communities where everyone thought they were safe."
For teachers, last spring's violence was a reminder of the potential for emotional outbursts and minor incidents to escalate -- especially in today's acting-out-prone world.
Regina Goines, who teaches science at McNicholas High School in Mount Washington, took a summer class on school safety.
Offered the past four years by Xavier University, the class has seen keen interest, growing from 14 people enrolled last year to 50 in July's five-day class.
It covered the gamut -- from a hostage simulation to dealing with encounters with angry students and parents.
"I thought, "This is really timely -- you can't know too much about this,' " Ms. Goines said. "It's more up front, more obvious now that the risk is there. . . . Everything I did this summer helps me be prepared."
Last year proved that "young students are capable of violence we didn't think they were," said Superintendent Michele Hummel of Madeira schools, who suspended three students in May who disrupted classes when rumors spread they allegedly were listing people they wanted to harm.
Over the summer, Madeira officials reworked the student-parent handbook, specifically mentioning hit lists among major disruptions that would not be tolerated. The penalty: 10 days' suspension, recommendation for expulsion and notification of police.
"The penalty we set is harsher than a year ago," Ms. Hummel said. "We are saying, we will hold you responsible whether it is intentional or just bad judgment."
New questions
Inquiries increased over the summer to the National School Safety Center in California, with school administrators seeking advice. "They are saying, "What should we do? We're scared. School's starting -- will this continue?' " said June Arnette, communications director with the safety center.
"This summer the questions were different, because they are asking, "What can we do to make our school safe?' where before it always was presumed school was safe."
Spurred by the shooting in Paducah, every Kentucky school will create a "safe school plan" this year, as directed in the new Safe Schools Law, enacted this spring by the general assembly.
That law offers schools grant money to create safety and violence-prevention programs.
Schools taking action include:
Holmes High School, Covington, where students can carry only book bags made of mesh or clear plastic in the hallways, must leave their coats and regular book bags inside lockers and wear school-issued name tags. The book-bag policy began last year to prevent students from carrying drugs, guns and other illegal items to school, said Principal William Grein.
Reading Junior - Senior High School, where officials are looking into encouraging police officers -- in uniform and plainclothes -- to spend time at school, emphasizing "that this facility is under constant monitoring," said Superintendent John Varis.
Kings Local Schools, where officials set up a "safe-school help line" for anonymous reports of concerns and began a new zero-tolerance policy for any threats.
Mason High School, where a "resource officer," a Mason police detective, will mingle with high school students this fall to build rapport.
Princeton City Schools, where James Freland, a former Springdale police chief, was hired for a newly created position: director of safety and security.
Policy worries
In Cincinnati Public Schools -- where doors are kept locked and some schools have full-time security guards while police patrol outside others -- there is worry that the district's new pay-for-performance policy discourages principals from disciplining students. The policy penalizes administrators for high suspension and expulsion rates.
After the school shootings made headlines nationwide last spring, retired Superintendent J. Michael Brandt sent a memo reminding principals of district policy regarding violent incidents: A death threat, a serious physical threat or criminal physical assault should result in immediate suspension with intent to expel and be reported to police immediately.
But some say the merit pay system should be changed to ensure fair discipline.
"School managers ought to be held accountable for school climate," said Cincinnati Federation of Teachers President Tom Mooney. "But expulsions and suspensions are the wrong measure to use. We should use teacher, parent and student surveys or the total number of offenses. We're really encouraging principals to cheat on discipline at the cost of educational climate."
Dana DiFilippo, Bernie Mixon,
Andrea Tortora, and Miriam Smith contributed to this report.
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