NCJ Number
172699
Journal
Security Journal Volume: 8 Issue: 3 Dated: August 1997 Pages: 255-262
Date Published
1997
Length
8 pages
Annotation
This case study describes a situation involving an unsafe high school campus that the author redesigned in terms of operations, curriculum, and functions to establish a safe learning setting; the school security staff was central in restoring safety and assisting in the school's educational mission.
Abstract
The Hawthorne Cedar Knolls High School was on the verge of being closed by the New York State Education Department in 1990 due to unsafe conditions for both the staff and the severely emotionally disturbed and behaviorally disordered students they served. One student had murdered another student during the summer school program in 1989. The author became the principal in September 1990 and determined that the most important task was to restructure the school in basic ways. The security staff became not only the campus police but also role models whom the children learned to respect and from whom they sought advice. Security personnel increased job satisfaction as they influenced the lives of fragile children. This transformation enlisted energies in proactive interactions that prevented violence and improved the quality of life on campus for everyone. Violent incidents declined and enrollment increased. The Hawthorne model presents a paradigm of school security that validates that involvement of the security personnel as supportive staff who are team members in the education of at-risk children. Further research should determine which factors are the most critical for replication elsewhere. Figures, tables, and 23 references