Anonymous wrote:I actually saw that on our listserv too. It's a small community and the posters are people we are familiar with. This was a very serious incident and is not just idle gossip. Law enforcement is now involved. I hope the community really presses the principal to be more accountable for the violent and threatening action of the students he releases out into the neighborhood. I don't think it's happening all the time and the really bad stuff happens only occasionally, but the reality is that it can be a pretty rough place and it's gotten to the point where many people in the surrounding community no longer feel safe because of the violence that goes unchecked. The principal says there's nothing he can do. It takes the police 15 minutes to get there, so by the time they arrive the kids have dispersed.

There's some misinformation in this post. The principal (a she, by the way) is working with MCPS security and MCPD to address the issue, and is addressing it within the school with kids. I don't think she ever said, "nothing I can do, it's off school grounds" but that's how people took it.

The school can take a number of steps in concert with the police, and I'm sure they will. Eastern does have a very rough element and MCPS has also chosen to place at the school a program for kids with anger management problems -- perhaps not the best place to do so. However, kids in the school are safe -- this happened after school, off school grounds, and is indicative of social issues that are part of the population feeding into the school. I am in and out of that school all the time and I've never experienced anything scary. I can tell you that most of the kids there are great and the school works hard to deal with issues that are typical of a school population that's generally low income, limited English speaking, etc.

Part of the issue with the incident currently making the listserv rounds is that the poster allowed her daughter to run up to the fighting kids and tell them to stop. The fighters then told the kid they were going to beat her up, too, which made the poster say, "they threatened to kill my kid." She needed to call 911 and then go into the school and call the school security staff, which is trained to deal with this kind of thing.

I"m not excusing the fighting -- far from it -- but people need to use common sense.

Anonymous wrote:^^^...BE an improvement...

It wouldn't, really. So probably someone who commits violence against others needs to be arrested.

^^^...BE an improvement...

Anonymous wrote:The kids don't all live right there, so chances are that the fighting would find a new location.

If I wanted to beat up a kid, I would go to where I knew the kid was going to be. Namely, outside the school, when school lets out.

But, ok. Let's say that if the school suspends the kid, the kid will go do their beating up in a different neighborhood. And this would an improvement, because...?

The kids don't all live right there, so chances are that the fighting would find a new location.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Knowing there have been problems, should there be increased routine police presence? No the principal is not technically responsable but he can still get involved through letters home and announcements to the kids.

There's talk about increased police presence, but it's not clear it would really help because it's so sporadic. I would think that kids that beat the crap out of other kids right next to the school should be suspended, no? That would be one way to be proactive.

How would suspending kids who beat up other kids outside of school stop them from beating up other kids outside of school?

Because they wouldn't be at the school. Maybe they'd be beating kids up somewhere else?

I assume that they're beating up kids they know from school, not roaming the streets beating up any random kid who happens to pass by.

I think that's right. Where the problems begin is when someone from the neighborhood decides, hey, I think they're about to beat that kid to death so maybe I'll try to prevent that, because you know, it's not great to watch a little kid being severely beaten across the street from me. That's when the issues creep into the neighborhood, because now you've just drawn attention to yourself.

Actually, I think that where the problems begin is when one kid beats up another kid.

In any case, the point is that suspending kids is not going to stop them from beating up on kids from that school, after school, off school property.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Knowing there have been problems, should there be increased routine police presence? No the principal is not technically responsable but he can still get involved through letters home and announcements to the kids.

There's talk about increased police presence, but it's not clear it would really help because it's so sporadic. I would think that kids that beat the crap out of other kids right next to the school should be suspended, no? That would be one way to be proactive.

How would suspending kids who beat up other kids outside of school stop them from beating up other kids outside of school?

Because they wouldn't be at the school. Maybe they'd be beating kids up somewhere else?

I assume that they're beating up kids they know from school, not roaming the streets beating up any random kid who happens to pass by.

I think that's right. Where the problems begin is when someone from the neighborhood decides, hey, I think they're about to beat that kid to death so maybe I'll try to prevent that, because you know, it's not great to watch a little kid being severely beaten across the street from me. That's when the issues creep into the neighborhood, because now you've just drawn attention to yourself.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Knowing there have been problems, should there be increased routine police presence? No the principal is not technically responsable but he can still get involved through letters home and announcements to the kids.

There's talk about increased police presence, but it's not clear it would really help because it's so sporadic. I would think that kids that beat the crap out of other kids right next to the school should be suspended, no? That would be one way to be proactive.

How would suspending kids who beat up other kids outside of school stop them from beating up other kids outside of school?

Because they wouldn't be at the school. Maybe they'd be beating kids up somewhere else?

I assume that they're beating up kids they know from school, not roaming the streets beating up any random kid who happens to pass by.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Knowing there have been problems, should there be increased routine police presence? No the principal is not technically responsable but he can still get involved through letters home and announcements to the kids.

There's talk about increased police presence, but it's not clear it would really help because it's so sporadic. I would think that kids that beat the crap out of other kids right next to the school should be suspended, no? That would be one way to be proactive.

How would suspending kids who beat up other kids outside of school stop them from beating up other kids outside of school?

Because they wouldn't be at the school. Maybe they'd be beating kids up somewhere else?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I actually saw that on our listserv too. It's a small community and the posters are people we are familiar with. This was a very serious incident and is not just idle gossip. Law enforcement is now involved. I hope the community really presses the principal to be more accountable for the violent and threatening action of the students he releases out into the neighborhood. I don't think it's happening all the time and the really bad stuff happens only occasionally, but the reality is that it can be a pretty rough place and it's gotten to the point where many people in the surrounding community no longer feel safe because of the violence that goes unchecked. The principal says there's nothing he can do. It takes the police 15 minutes to get there, so by the time they arrive the kids have dispersed.

I don't get it.

They fight on the fields next to the school and move as a group into neighboring streets right when they're released from school.

But the principal can't not release them out into the neighborhood.

Agreed. But having a fighting mob spill out from the school - something that would not happen but for the fact that the school is right there - is something that reflects directly on the school and is the impact the school brings to the community. Saying "it's not my problem" would ignore that reality. From what I understand, she is making a genuine effort to identify the students and hold people accountable. I suspect the community's tolerance for this sort of garbage is at an end.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Knowing there have been problems, should there be increased routine police presence? No the principal is not technically responsable but he can still get involved through letters home and announcements to the kids.

There's talk about increased police presence, but it's not clear it would really help because it's so sporadic. I would think that kids that beat the crap out of other kids right next to the school should be suspended, no? That would be one way to be proactive.

How would suspending kids who beat up other kids outside of school stop them from beating up other kids outside of school?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I actually saw that on our listserv too. It's a small community and the posters are people we are familiar with. This was a very serious incident and is not just idle gossip. Law enforcement is now involved. I hope the community really presses the principal to be more accountable for the violent and threatening action of the students he releases out into the neighborhood. I don't think it's happening all the time and the really bad stuff happens only occasionally, but the reality is that it can be a pretty rough place and it's gotten to the point where many people in the surrounding community no longer feel safe because of the violence that goes unchecked. The principal says there's nothing he can do. It takes the police 15 minutes to get there, so by the time they arrive the kids have dispersed.

I don't get it.

They fight on the fields next to the school and move as a group into neighboring streets right when they're released from school.

But the principal can't not release them out into the neighborhood.

Anonymous wrote:Knowing there have been problems, should there be increased routine police presence? No the principal is not technically responsable but he can still get involved through letters home and announcements to the kids.

There's talk about increased police presence, but it's not clear it would really help because it's so sporadic. I would think that kids that beat the crap out of other kids right next to the school should be suspended, no? That would be one way to be proactive.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I actually saw that on our listserv too. It's a small community and the posters are people we are familiar with. This was a very serious incident and is not just idle gossip. Law enforcement is now involved. I hope the community really presses the principal to be more accountable for the violent and threatening action of the students he releases out into the neighborhood. I don't think it's happening all the time and the really bad stuff happens only occasionally, but the reality is that it can be a pretty rough place and it's gotten to the point where many people in the surrounding community no longer feel safe because of the violence that goes unchecked. The principal says there's nothing he can do. It takes the police 15 minutes to get there, so by the time they arrive the kids have dispersed.

I don't get it.

They fight on the fields next to the school and move as a group into neighboring streets right when they're released from school.

Knowing there have been problems, should there be increased routine police presence? No the principal is not technically responsable but he can still get involved through letters home and announcements to the kids.