Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Emmet District Prepared To Deal With Violence

School violence has claimed the lives of 16 children nationwide since October, 1997.

This includes three such incidents in Arkansas, the most notable being the Jonesboro massacre.

At Emmet, Superintendent Dr. Gene Ross said every threat is taken seriously and investigated.

Recently, he said, the Arkansas State Police came and looked the facility over and got copies of the school's floor plan.

This way, should the unthinkable happen, the ASP will know the layout of the building and any particular room or area involved. The troopers can then quickly assess the situation and work to alleviate any problems.

The ASP, though, is doing this in all schools in the area for just such an emergency.

According to Ross, all threats could lead to violence. This, he said, is why all are taken seriously even if the person making the threat was joking.

Emmet's two principals work with the classroom teachers, letting them know if they hear about a threat to report it to them (the principals).

To date, Ross said, Emmet's school hasn't experienced any serious acts of violence, though there are times students don't get along with one another. There have been no major problems with physical abuse or assaults.

Those students who get in trouble for abusing or assaulting another are sent home for their first offense with a conference between the teacher, principal, Dr. Ross and parents of the child involved.

But, if it's learned the offense was premeditated, the punishment can be jumped up to second offense level. This would mean a suspension to go with the conference. Should a weapon be involved, the student is expelled without question.

The Emmet School is drug and gun free, Ross said. Any student with a firearm on campus is automatically suspended for the remainder of the semester. And, he said, there is the conference which includes the student this time.

Should a student be caught with a weapon twice, not only are they suspended for the remainder of the semester in session, but the next semester as well, along with the conference.

In addition, Ross said, sexual harassment is not tolerated at the school. A first offense will net a warning and notification of parents.

The second time it occurs, the student committing the act will either get three swats with a paddle or suspended for three days, as well as the conference.

If the student is a slow learner and attempts sexual harassment a third time, they will be expelled.

The same goes for those wanting to be in gangs, pretending to be in gangs or who are actually involved in the gang lifestyle. This sort of behavior will not be tolerated at Emmet, Ross said.

Any type of gang-related activity is immediately reported to law enforcement authorities.

For those students brought up on gang-related incidents, the first offense nets a five-day suspension and conference; the second time is expulsion for the remainder of the semester in progress; with the third time being expulsion for the semester and another semester. After the third offense, the student must appear before the school board to plea their case before being readmitted to school.

The district has had no problems with drugs either, he added, saying the Nevada County Sheriff's Office regularly brings its drug dog to the school for random searches. So far, he said, nothing has been found, though the dog has hit on lockers at times.

Talking about law enforcement, Ross said the district has good communication with agencies in the area.

As an added safety precaution, the two principals carry hand-held radios wherever they go on campus.

Ross said the school's open courtyard makes it much easier to see someone coming, and there are no crowded halls.

The district has discussed adding video surveillance, but hasn't done this yet.

Knowing who to look at for potential problems isn't easy, Ross said. Sometimes it's the person who would least likely be suspected. This, he said, is because they will take so much and hold it in before exploding.

"It could be a perfect child," he said. "You can't always target those who cause trouble, but we watch for this as well."

Emmet's teachers are trained in what to look for in the area of possible trouble. The topic of violence, Ross said, has become one of the main things discussed at in-service meetings.

"You can't rule anything out nowadays," he said. "The state, since the Jonesboro incident, has told us to tell teachers in advance when fire drills are planned." This way they will know something's up if an alarm goes off when a drill has not been scheduled.

The principals, he continued, also speak to the children about violence, as has the counselor.

This way, Ross said, the children know they have someone they can talk to about what's bothering them, or in some cases, who's bothering them.

In classroom situations, he said,

being able to talk is the key to diffusing potential problems. Additionally, if a teacher knows something is bothering a student, they can alert others and try and get the child help.

"There's no way to prevent violence," Ross said. "It always comes back to the home. Parents need to be aware of what their children are doing."

The district hasn't considered having a metal detector installed, though it does have a hand-held unit which can be used if there are any problems.

Emmet's campus is semi-closed, Ross said, meaning the students can't drive off campus at lunch, but can walk home if they live close enough.

Still, district officials are keeping their eyes peeled for problems.