Losing school police officer last straw for parents
Complete coverage of the Philadelphia School District by the Philadelphia Inquirer's Kristen Graham.
Losing school police officer last straw for parents
Kristen Graham
Nobody liked losing NTAs, administrative positions or the supply budget at Shawmont Elementary School, but staffers and parents dealt with it. Times are tough; everyone did more. Teachers spent more money out of their own pockets; parents sent in supplies, too.
But losing the school police officer was the last straw for Janet McHale and Michelle Havens, the Roxborough school’s Home and School Association co-presidents.
“We realize that in these tough economic times, something needs to be done to help stop the madness of overspending,” McHale and Havens wrote in a letter to me. “We can deal with having to send in reams of paper so that the teachers can make copies to assist our children in learning. What we cannot stand for is when the school district indiscriminately puts the safety and welfare of our school children at risk.”
The Philadelphia School District, of course, is grappling with the worst budget crisis anyone has ever seen. On Friday, officials announced they must still cut $38.8 million by June to make ends meet.
But it’s already made numerous painful reductions — laying off thousands of employees, cutting programs, reducing already stretched school budgets.
But what really got to McHale and Havens was the layoff of 91 school police officers. Shawmont was one of 25 schools that lost its officer, bringing to 100 the total of district schools without an officer.
District officials have said that roving school police patrols will cover those schools, and Philadelphia police will also monitor them.
That’s not good enough for McHale.
“It’s a safe school, and one of the reasons it’s a safe school is because we had a school police officer,” she said.
Their officer, who was not laid off but sent to another city elementary school, was a calming presence in the school, McHale said.
“Kids felt they could go to her — in school, out of school,” said McHale.
The school has 585 students in kindergarten through eighth grade. It’s got an academic music program that attracts students from around the city. And with the Catholic school closings and mergers, “we’ve had people coming in right and left for tours,” McHale said.
A large city elementary school can’t afford to be without a school police officer, the moms think.
They’ve called an emergency Home and School meeting for Tuesday. The group will brainstorm ways to get their officer back, McHale said.
“We’ve got to do something,” she said. “This isn’t safe.”
The meeting is scheduled for Tuesday at 7 p.m. at the Ridge Avenue Methodist Church, Ridge and Shawmont Avenues.
You people are unbelievable. Hm, let''s see - the US pays the LOWEST EFFECTIVE TAX RATE since WWII. That, dopes, is a fact. Well no wonder you can't pay for services. Gotta have your $250 a month cable TV, cell phones, and all the other stuff that used to be free (or pretty cheap). Gotta give corporations "tax amnesties" because if you don't they will.......what? If americans weren't so quick to slit each others throat to bribe a business to come to your town, maybe you'd figure out how to get the taxes your giving away. I'm so sick of under-educated gullible fools buying this "too much tax" garbage. You idiots get $10 more in your paycheck and the 1% get 10 million. Idiots.— enabler1- You left out the billions of dollars spent in Afghanistan to fight a war that is impossible to win militarily. One can only guess how much of that money ends up in Swiss bank accounts for the Afghans that will flee the country when we finally leave. And of course the billions spent in Iraq to find the imaginary WMDs. Then their is the fact that all over the country communities are cutting back on money spent in education. Because this certainly is the way to compete in a global economy. You decimate your educational system and then wonder why we become a second class country. Sometimes one has to wonder if common sense really is that common. — mindstorms
Comment removed.- Enabler your post is spot on.— Shariyf
- Show yourself— The Philly Shadow
- let the bush tax cuts expire. no discussion.
- enabler1 has my vote!— Boru
- I hope the School police association of phila will start doing protests. These mad hatters are going to layoffs more officers as they make mor highschools into Charters. Between a rock & a hard place, There is no room t run.— gotaway483
- Oh the good ole days when there were no police in the schools on a daily bases; no aids on school buses; no $80,000/yr job for some to attend funerals, etc etc etc. The good ole days when it was a school job to teach, not play social services to the city's kids.— cadet
- enabler! enabler!— ConverseB24
- Comment removed.
- ok we will blame the rich. first time in history- giving taxes cuts while going to war. that is the real problem with the bush admin. it wasn't the war as the not paying for it. bush's tax cuts were stupid. i will pay more in taxes and so will the rich. yes blame the rich. no cops at dangerous schools because you have a billion dollars. shame on you for defending them.
- Arm the Children!!!!— quigly46
- Comment removed.
- wow cut cut cut.. your school district has funds to cover only wat they believe is beneficial to the people on top.. Everyone is sacrificing except the ones making the decisions are yous tired yet... let them tax us, let them take away services, let them call all the shots and yous hurry and grab the vaseline..bend over!!— noncents
- Comment removed.
- Why is it there used to be a time when there was no need for a policeman in any school in Philadelphia. Perhaps putting prayer back in the public schools that was taken out by The Supreme Court in the early 60s would be a start.That is exactly when the city schools started on their downward spiral. 50 years ago.If only they realised the massive amount of bloodshed that decission helped create.— tastycake
- noncents " yous" - Really? - WOW— JoePa06
- Comment removed.
- @Tastycake What hurt this nation in the 60s was the destruction of the Great Society that Lyndon B.Johnson had envisioned for this nation. After Worldwar 2, This nation had so much prosperity that we were investing in the education of GIs & infastructure. The Vietnam war syphoned 100s of billions that was going to go to the inner cities. This was what caused the inner cities to explode for lack of jobs. Once again a war syphones money that would of went to educating the masses & infastructure. Obama is attempting to reallocate money that was used for a pointless war in Iraq. He will use it for hiring veterans to be cops & eventually infastructure projects. Taking prayer out of the schools only hurt the staff & administrators who needed it. Supreme Court was just instituting the Separation of Church & State.— gotaway483
- If the School district did not give away around 3 million to Kenny Gamble in not collecting any rent for two schools it could pay for what 91 part time officers. But officers and kids do not pay off politicians. Guys like Kenny Gamble do!— poogie
- Comment removed.
- I went through 12 years of public school without any type of security personnel, let alone officers. Philadephias entire economy seems to evolve around violence,protection and corruption. Most cities evolve around schooling and career training in Philadelphia the economy i sbased on school security, prison guards, criminal courts and police officers.
— joe smith - These mom's should stop and ask themselves "Why is it that we need a police officer in our school"?— varsity
- The children are already armed !— Time4AChange
During the school year, you’ll frequently find her hosting live chats about the district on Philly.com. Please do pass along the scoop about what’s going on at your Philadelphia public school; Kristen welcomes tips, story ideas and witty banter at kgraham@phillynews.com or 215-854-5146.
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