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School Safety Concerns Teachers

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May 13, 2008 9:00 pm US/Eastern

School Safety Concerns Teachers

PHILADELPHIA (CBS 3) ― Philadelphia's Thomas Edison High School is a violent place, according to a letter written Monday by a group of Edison teachers.

We have "deep concerns for the safety of our student population," the teachers wrote to Jack Stollsteimer, Philadelphia's state-appointed Safe Schools Advocate.

The teachers point to an incident on May 7, where a 16-year-old student brought a loaded handgun inside the school. They say that incident capped a month filled with acts of vandalism, break-ins and the beating of a student.

The unidentified male student who brought the gun into the building was arrested and faces two felony charges; however, it is unclear if he will be expelled.

"A high school youngster knows right from wrong, and that is definitely wrong," said Jerry Jordan, the President of the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers, the teacher's union.

The letter from the Edison teachers exemplifies an issue raised in a new report from the Pennsylvania Department of Education: Does the School District of Philadelphia properly handle serious incidents of misconduct?

Stollsteimer says according to law, the district should expel most students found in possession of weapons on school property.

According to the state report, during the 2006-07 school years, "The School District did not expel any student found to have possessed a weapon on school property."

Instead, the district says it transfers students to alternative education programs.

"We don't believe that we can put children out on the street, says James Golden, the district's Chief Safety Executive. "They're entitled and have a right to education, so in many cases we expel to disciplinary schools."

"It's absolutely wrong for a student to be transferred to another school in Philadelphia – which is what happens too often – and faculty and students in another school are exposed to that child," said Jordan.

Last school year, according to the state report, there were 998 incidents involving weapons on school property, at any school sponsored event, or on transportation to and from school.

The report also says only 35 percent of the students found with weapons last school year were transferred out of their home school and 70 percent of the weapons brought to Philadelphia schools were not found by metal detectors.

(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)

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