Ban the bullies; keep the phones
There was a chilling story in the paper Sunday about cell phones being banned from the Milwaukee public schools.
Thugs who wanted to fight in school were calling in family reinforcements by the carload onto campus with their cell phones.
The result is that now no one can take their cell phones onto campus. This topic always stirs up a hot debate among my colleagues because, as they correctly point out, we got along just fine for years at school without any cell phones.
True, but they have become such a convenience now I admit that I would hate to see them go. We will use them today to tell our son what time and where we will pick him up from school. We do this every day because we are never quite sure when we will be getting finished with work. He goes to the library to work on his homework until we get there, and then we call when we are in the parking lot. He made two calls this morning; one to a friend who was going to ride with us, but didn't show up. He called to check on the kid to make sure he had a ride to school. And second, he called that friend again to meet up together on campus before classes started.
It's not necessary, of course, but the phones make things more convenient. Of course, we all understand safety first; but I say press charges on all the fighters and keep the cell phones.
Here is the sad scene in Milwaukee, according to the Associated Press:
MILWAUKEE -- School brawls have gone high tech, with students using cell phones to call in reinforcements -- in one case requiring police and pepper spray to break up a fight that swelled to about 20 family members on school grounds.The fracas earlier this month, in which six students and three adults were arrested, was the latest in a surge of cell phone-related fights and prompted Wisconsin's largest school district to ban cell phones in its 217 schools beginning Monday.
"We consider [cell phones] almost as weapons because when they call, we're the ones out in front and we don't know these people are coming," said Mike Heese, safety security assistant at Bradley Tech High School, where the fight happened.
Prosecutors also are taking a tougher stance. Adults who harm anyone at a school could face felony charges, said Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm. Penalties in the past often were fines for disorderly conduct.
Milwaukee joins a growing number of school districts that prohibit or limit cell phones. But many bans, including those in New York City, Los Angeles and Boston, were imposed because the phones cause distractions or are used to cheat.
Milwaukee Public Schools have had about one cell-phone-augmented fight a month in the last three years, but it seems to have worsened during the last year, said Peter Pochowski, the schools' director of safety and security.
Two years ago, a fighting student used his cell phone twice in a matter of weeks to summon two carloads of family members, Pochowski said.
Jamilynn Brushel, 18, a senior at Bradley Tech, said she would rather see stricter security guards and teachers, because students who want to fight will do so even without cell phones.
"They won't need people coming in," Brushel said. "They'll just get people who are already here."
The district will expel students who use cell phones to summon outsiders for a fight, Superintendent William Andrekopoulos said.
Others could be suspended, have their phone temporarily confiscated, or have a conference with the student or parents.
There will be exceptions to the ban for hardship cases, he said.
"I think people have to rise themselves up from a level of convenience to a level of safety," Andrekopoulos said. "I think that's where we're at in this country."
Comments
This law is ridiculous and stupid. Spanking and Whipping have different definitions. Also, what if a child does not respond to alternative methods? Lock them in their rooms and not feed them...oh yes I bet that would go over well. Now that would be child abuse. Spanking is a slap on the buttocks if you were to slap them across the face then I can see other wise but spanking is different. Any sane person would know that. Instead of thinking up ridiculous laws how about we turn our attention to something that would make a difference in the world instead of stupidity. If Assemblywoman Sally Lieber would like to make laws like no spanking then she doesn't need to be an Assemblywoman.
Posted by: Katie Stickel | January 31, 2007 4:13 PM
If you need to reach someone at school call the office and let them give the message to the student. You don't need cell phones at school or have them banned from the classrooms and only let them use them after school. It truly is no biggy. I agree press charges on all the fighters. All it is, is stupidity.
Posted by: Katie Stickel | January 31, 2007 4:53 PM