KYLE, S.D. – Little Wound school here was closed March 7 when a student threatened to shoot everybody in the school.
Oglala Sioux Public Safety officials were notified and school administrators decided to cancel classes.
The student was reported to have had been seen having an argument on the school grounds the day before, but left without incident.
The school opened again March 9 with tribal police officers screening students with metal detectors. Five students were arrested with homemade weapons though no guns were found. The weapons included a small bat, a metal rod and piece of wood with screws in it, Linda Hunter, Little Wound superintendent told authorities.
A police officer will be on duty at the school for the remainder of the year and the school will hire two full-time security guards. The metal detector will be used for the remainder of the year. In addition, security cameras will be installed at the high school and middle school; a camera is already in place in the elementary school, Hunter said.
Little Wound school policy dictates that students making threats will be suspended indefinitely pending expulsion by the school board.
The most recent national fatal incident occurred at Santana High School in Santee, Calif., where two students were killed by a fellow student. Little is heard about the incidents in Indian country, but measures are in place in many of the tribal and American Indian schools to deal with potential violence.
Mark Froke, superintendent of the Flandreau Indian School, said few threats or acts of violence have taken place in the Flandreau schools largely because of a new program which reinforces positive interaction between students and early mediation efforts by staff to prevent threatening behavior among students.
“We implemented the Character Counts Program on a K-12 basis that seems to have a very positive impact on the student body because it allows them to build character and interact with each other on a very positive basis. We do not have a violence problem in the school system,” Froke said.
He said there was one minor incident last year and two minor incidents this year such as one student pushing another.
Like other districts, it has established a zero tolerance approach to threatening behavior among its more the 820 students enrolled in grades K-12.
“We’re fortunate our students get along,” he said.
He said the zero tolerance plan was initiated in response to fighting incidents which took place more than six years ago.
“We had to take action to stop that activity. We feel the zero tolerance was effective in addressing the problem. In addition, we stepped up supervision and implemented the Character Counts Program as well as peer helpers,” Froke said.
While students do face penalties including suspension and expulsion for more violent behavior, teachers and staff attempt to deal with issues well before they reach a level of violence, he said.
“We’re trying to help kids deal with problems in a positive manner. Based on our record over the last few years, our plan is effective,” he said.
“We are alert to what is taking place in the school system. If we have two students arguing about something or having difficulties, we try to mediate the situation and solve the problem through counseling. We’ve headed off a number of problems through just knowing our students very well and helping them work through the problem in a counseling setting,” he said.
The first incident involving physical violence includes a penalty of suspension. The second requires a student to appear before the board for an expulsion hearing.
“I have to give a great deal of credit to our students and our staff for the positive school climate we do have. We work very hard to have a positive school climate to help students get along with one another. It is clearly working,” he said.
At Tiospa Zina School, in Agency Village, students also face a zero tolerance approach. Students face similar penalties for such violations listed in the student handbook, said guidance counselor Craig Kirby.
“We have one basic concept for the whole school – violence is not tolerated. Everybody is really made aware of it. Violence is defined as a gesture or nasty look,” he said. Anything beyond that, he said, including verbal harassment and assault include consequences such as suspension or expulsion for more serious acts or multiple acts.
Physical violence will result in a suspension of at least a couple of days and if it continues, the student can be expelled. When a student pushes another student they can be suspended for at least two days and if a student hits another student it can result in a penalty of a week-long suspension.
“If a student is physically violent against another person, before the student can come back to school, they must show up with a parent or guardian. As a follow up, students can be required to agree to a behavior plan, provide community service and comply with a daily performance sheet teachers must sign. Monetary penalties for damages may also be among consequences, Kirby said.
The district was forced to suspend two middle school students for a week on March 14 after they were involved in a scuffle. As in many cases, Kirby said the two were new to the school district.
As a first step, the school attempts to address the issue with intervention. The district’s First Step Program allows teachers, staff and parents to refer the children for counseling to head off such events.
A staff of three counselors and four teachers trained in mediating conflicts work with the students whose behavior suggests they might be nearing a conflict.
“Violence isn’t tolerated here. Kids recognize that and respond to it,” he said.
Richard Bordeaux, superintendent for the Todd County School District which has an enrollment of 2,200 students, said his staff is well aware of the potential for threats and violent acts. Bordeaux indicated there is the fear that such behavior might occur with each violent act reported in the media.
However, the incidents diminished at the district after the school board chose to take a more active role in dealing with disciplinary issues. Bordeaux said a year ago it was largely an administrative issue, but the position has shifted to bringing students and parents before the superintendent and the board in dealing with penalties as the result of threats or violent acts.
Bordeaux said he takes the problem seriously. “After the Columbine incident what pretty much happened all over the country is schools established emergency drills and processes. We’ve been fairly lucky,” he said.
The numbers of students appearing before the superintendent increased, but that is a result of the change in the way the issue is pursued. The superintendent said he sees three to 10 students each week.
Last year only 20 to 25 students faced penalties associated with disciplinary action because there was an attempt to mediate the disputes inside the schools rather than before the superintendent or the school board. The student appearance was reserved to those whose behavior resulted in the most serious acts such as fighting.
If a student gets into a fight the district has a “no fault” policy which means both students face the superintendent and the school board. If it is a provable assault, the district seeks the intervention of the police, Bordeaux said.
“After a couple of times, we get the parents involved.”
Some of the more serious events in recent years have included bomb threats, a high school student who showed up with a small-caliber pistol, fighting, and a fifth grader who carried a nonfunctional BB gun that looked like a pistol.
Look alike or not, Bordeaux said the zero tolerance policy is clear about weapons.
Threats are not taken lightly. “We try to emphasize to students and parents to tell us about it. We may not guarantee we can do anything about them. Unless they tell us, we can’t do anything.”
Most of the problems stem from students whose homes are absent of support from parents or students who face academic challenges.
“Ninety percent of our students are good students, but there is still that 10 percent,” he said.
Although the district doesn’t have a formal program for teachers monitoring the behavior of students, it does have an informal policy prompting teachers and staff to refer students for counseling when a behavioral problem appears.
Mediation is part of dealing with disputes between students, but if there is a second serious infraction, students face expulsion. Bordeaux said no student has been expelled since one in high school, sporting a gun, was expelled four years ago.
The district uses other options such as a form of “time out” for troubled students including a counseling and an intervention center, home study and referral to the Family Life Center operated by Sinte Gleska University. Two students were referred to the counseling and intervention center this year, he said.
The superintendent, who has been with the district for more than 10 years, said additional measures were added during the past three years including a couple of security monitors who regularly patrol the grounds of the high school.
