{"id":44,"date":"2018-09-16T12:23:50","date_gmt":"2018-09-16T12:23:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.justtalk.blog\/?p=44"},"modified":"2018-09-16T12:29:52","modified_gmt":"2018-09-16T12:29:52","slug":"schools-vs-police-round-two","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/justtalk.blog\/index.php\/2018\/09\/16\/schools-vs-police-round-two\/","title":{"rendered":"Policing Schools, Round Two?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Op-ed published in the Press and Sun Bulletin, September 16, 2018<\/a>, (they provided the new title) with additional references here (see end of text below).<\/p>\n

Schools Don’t Need More Resource Officers<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Recently, the Press & Sun-Bulletin reported<\/a> District Attorney Steve Cornwell\u2019s accelerating effort to place yet more police in our schools.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve seen this before: in the 1980s and 1990s, the DARE drug prevention program put officers in the nation\u2019s schools at a cost of over $1 billion. By 2000, it was clear the program was completely ineffective, and it collapsed. As one mayor put it, it was a fraud upon the public and public education.<\/p>\n

As school budgets tighten, parents and teachers might wonder if shifting resources once again from educational programs to police supervision of students is wise. The DA, in announcing the expansion of the Student Resource Officers, surely thinks so: \u201c… with their backgrounds, training and field experience, our School Resource Officers have dealt with issues related to children, domestic violence, drug abuse and violence \u2014 these experiences and lessons are invaluable to the schools and students.\u201d<\/p>\n

But is this the case? Does the experience of retired police officers with adult violence, SWAT teams and undercover drug operations help solve the real problems of youths and our schools?<\/p>\n

Empirical studies show that there is little evidence that having armed police in school corridors prevents drug use, bullying, and disruptive or even violent behavior. Does it really make sense to turn a scuffle among students into an assault charge, or acting out in class into a suspension and a charge of disorderly conduct? Are these police matters, or problems to be resolved by parents, teachers and those trained in effective alternatives to detention and incarceration?<\/p>\n

What we do know is that schools with SROs have fewer resources, especially counselors, to address students\u2019 social, emotional and discipline needs. SRO schools also refer kids to the juvenile legal system at a rate five times greater than schools without SROs, with poor, black and Latino students far more likely to be suspended, expelled or drop out because of unevenly applied, punitive policies.<\/p>\n

Do we really need another 10 years to find out what doesn\u2019t work? Can we afford it? Can our youths?<\/p>\n

William Martin is a founding member of Justice and Unity for the Southern Tier and teaches at Binghamton University.<\/em><\/p>\n

Additional references (not in newspaper):<\/p>\n

Multiple long-term studies chart the failure of DARE to change students\u2019 use of drugs;\u00a0 one study\u00a0 suggested that DARE students\u00a0were\u00a0more\u00a0<\/u><\/em>likely than their peers to experiment with drugs and alcohol.\u00a0 See among others:<\/p>\n