In Wicomico County, Maryland, the school district is responding to a new state requirement much differently than a different Maryland county’s school board that I highlighted this previous post.
In this case, the initial step is to set-up monthly meetings between the school administration and law enforcement. This is an often forgotten link in combating gangs. Although these are two very different agencies, they service the same customer, the community. And one of my favorite sayings is directly mentioned in the article,
"We have gangs in our communities," Turner said. "And schools reflect what is going on in those communities."
The school board is also taking appropriate steps to train staff and highlight the differences between actual gang members and the “noncriminal cliques.” This is HUGE! This shows that this particular school board is taking the time to learn the differences and to not label kids. Another key measure being taken here is the use of a former offender. This can bring credibility to the program from the community angle, and provides someone who can give input from a perspective that is different than the school board or police.
There is one comment mentioned though that could be cause for future problems;
“The policy also stipulates a special file for reports and investigation of gang activity be kept in a secure location at each school. Records on individual students would be destroyed when the student graduates, permanently leaves school or turns 22 years old, whichever occurs first.”
The board needs to ensure that this policy does not conflict with state mandates on database collection, record purging, and juvenile record keeping.
No comments:
Post a Comment