THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, September 24, 1995 TAG: 9509240030
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JON GLASS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Long : 108 lines
Two consultants who evaluated the safety of the city's schools found evidence that some crimes, including gang activity, have gone unreported by school officials worried about public image. They also urged tighter control over school security forces.
In separate reports released Thursday, the consultants recommended that the supervision of school security officers be removed from individual principals and placed under the command of a central administrative director.
In interviews with police and security officers, the consultants heard allegations that some security employees were ``too personal'' with students of the opposite sex, took free food from school cafeterias and were routinely called on to perform odd jobs unrelated to security.
One consultant who reviewed security in the city's five high schools reported that two police officers on the city's gang squad said some principals were ``in a major denial mode due to fear of admitting that crime is occurring within their schools.''
The two officers also were quoted as saying that police were ``not receiving the necessary level of cooperation.''
School administration officials, who reviewed the recommendations during Thursday's School Board meeting, sharply disputed some of the findings, including suggestions of a gang problem or a poor relationship with police.
Drawing the most criticism was the high school report by consultant Alex Rascon Jr. He is chairman of the National Association of School Safety and Law Enforcement Officers; he also is the director of police services for the San Diego city schools.
Rascon's report noted gang-related graffiti in every high school and said he saw some students wearing gang attire. His report said Norfolk has about 40 gangs, with more than 1,000 members.
School officials said Rascon, who spent four days in Norfolk in July during summer school, was not familiar enough with the school system to draw some of the conclusions he did.
``This report does not reflect the positive safe movement we've had the past four years - we don't have a gang problem or the graffiti problem stated here,'' School Board Chairman Ulysses Turner said.
Police officials, including Chief Melvin High, responded by praising the cooperation between the schools and police.
Police Maj. Tony Calogrides appeared at the School Board meeting to ``reaffirm without a doubt'' that ``there's an exceptional amount of cooperation.''
Barry Hylton, coordinator of school security, said, ``I still say to parents that there is nowhere you can send your children and feel as comfortable about their safety as our schools.''
The other consultant, Kenneth S. Trump, conducted a security audit of the city's eight middle schools. Trump is director of safety and security for the Parma (Ohio) City School District and assistant director of a tri-city task force on gangs.
School officials paid the consultants an estimated $17,000 total, using money from a $508,000 federal Safe Schools Act grant awarded jointly last January to Norfolk and Portsmouth schools. Portsmouth schools underwent a similar security audit, but officials said Friday that they would not release any reports until further review.
Norfolk Schools Superintendent Roy D. Nichols Jr. said he was ``extremely disappointed'' with some of the negative findings but acknowledged suggestions worth considering.
Nichols agreed with recommendations that school and police officials should meet regularly to discuss security, that security officers should be outfitted in easily identifiable dress and that any signs of gang activity should be stamped out.
School officials said they are preparing a written response to the consultants' findings.
The School Board for the past two years has placed priority on safe schools, and reports of weapons and serious offenses are down.
Trump said in his report that student fighting, assaults and ``general aggressive behavior'' were top concerns voiced by security staff and administrators. Some principals worried about the spillover of neighborhood disputes, which included gangs.
Trump noted a problem with ``internal thefts,'' including computers, and recommended that school property be better secured.
Based on interviews with police and security officers, Trump reported that ``numerous incidences were cited where crimes were reported to police by parents that had not been reported to police by school officials, even though the offense occurred at school.''
The consultants urged the School Board to stop allowing school principals to hire and manage security officers. They said security should be organized under an independent department and run by a director of security.
Both consultants recommended hiring an investigator to probe allegations of crime. A similar recommendation was made in a 1988 security audit but was not followed, Trump noted.
Trump reported that he ``observed and interviewed multiple officers who clearly perform security functions in an exemplary manner.'' But both consultants recommended better pay - some security employees with nearly 20 years of experience were making just over $20,000 a year - and said more training should be provided.
Trump said he found security officers too often performing non-security duties, such as driving students home and running errands to the bank and post office.
Rascon recommended eliminating video surveillance cameras and hand-held metal detectors, saying they do not prevent problems. Metal detectors, he said, ``are offensive, labor intensive, provide a short-term solution and a false sense of security.''
Rascon also recommended a districtwide student dress code to counter gangs in schools. Security officers, he said, should ``wear professional attire with a jacket or blazer clearly marked with large bold letters, CAMPUS SUPERVISION.''
KEYWORDS: NORFOLK PUBLIC SCHOOLS VANDALISM GANGS by CNB