State's 25 most-dangerous schools all in Phila.

PHILLY SCHOOLS once again comprise the state's entire list of "Persistently Dangerous Schools" despite the largest decrease in violent incidents in five years.

Twenty-five city schools are on the list, released yesterday, up from the 20 that made up last year's list.

District officials said the increase was due to a continued emphasis on reporting all incidents.

Five city schools were dropped from the list, but 10 were added, including Northeast High, where actor Tony Danza is slated to co-teach an English class for an A&E reality show.

Also new to the list are Stephen A. Douglas High; Horace Furness High; Kensington Culinary Arts; Kensington Intern Business; Olney East; Roxborough; University City, and Theodore Roosevelt and Warren Harding middle schools.

Though the number of dangerous schools has increased, the total number of violent incidents reported is down by 11 percent.

James Golden, the district's safety chief, said that beefed-up security and interventions made the difference.

He said that "engagement of the community, police and social services" played a part.

"We've been working with principals, individually and collectively," he said. "We're seeing results."

Violent incidents have decreased even at the 25 schools designated as persistently dangerous.

Fitzsimmons, Frankford, Olney West and Overbrook high schools, and Stetson and Vare middle schools all reduced their reported crimes.

Of the 10 newly added schools, three showed decreases in the number of incidents: Roosevelt Middle School, by 20 percent; Northeast High and Harding Middle School each showed declines of 6 percent.

The number of robberies, weapons and morals offenses are down, as well as assaults on students, teachers and administrators.

The state defines a "persistently dangerous" school as one that meets any of the following criteria for this year and one of the two previous years: at least five dangerous incidents in a school with enrollment of 250 or less; dangerous incidents representing 2 percent of a school's enrollment for schools with 251 to 1,000 students; 20 or more dangerous incidents in schools with enrollments exceeding 1,000.

Assaults on school police, however, jumped 17 percent, according to the data.

The numbers don't add up, said Mike Lodise, president of the School Police Union, which represents 368 district security personnel.

"How is it that violent incidents are down, but the assaults on school police are up?" he asked. "That doesn't make sense."

Golden said that school officers are often in the heart of dangerous situations.

"School police are the first responders," he said, adding that the state should consider reevaluating its criteria for designating schools as dangerous.

A dangerous incident is defined as one in which weapons possessions or violence results in an arrest. Students who are arrested for their involvement in a serious incident are expelled and sent to alternative schools.

Students in dangerous schools can choose to transfer to other schools, Golden said.

Each state is required by the No Child Left Behind Act to establish its own standards for identifying schools considered dangerous.