Communitywide Approach to Stem Violence.As gang violence spread in Lima, Ohio Lima (IPA pronunciation: [laɪmə]) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Allen CountyGR6. , education in the city schools began to suffer. In many areas of the city, children would go for long periods without parental supervision Parental supervision is a parenting technique that involves looking after, or monitoring a child's activities. Young children are generally incapable of looking after themselves, and incompetent in making informed decisions for their own well-being. . Positive role models were almost nonexistent non·ex·is·tence n. 1. The condition of not existing. 2. Something that does not exist. non , and youth were exposed to gang activities. The growth of gangs and gang violence over the past decade was unprecedented. Students in Lima were seriously at risk of having their schooling disrupted by gang-related activities. School leaders concluded that gang violence was not simply a school system problem, but a community problem. Thus, administrators of the city school system took the lead in forming a communitywide coalition consisting of representatives from 25 community groups and public agencies. The purpose of the coalition was to stop the spread of gang activities in Lima and Allen County Allen County is the name of several counties in the United States:
The coalition included expertise in student assistant services, family resource planning Resource planning may refer to:
By working with the coalition, school administrators made some strides in their crackdown on gang activity. The measures taken included school-based intervention and training at the high school level; intelligent communication between the schools and law enforcement agencies A law enforcement agency (LEA) is a term used to describe any agency which enforces the law. This may be a local or state police, federal agencies such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) or the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). ; a truancy policy that considered roles for the schools, business community, juvenile court juvenile court Special court handling problems of delinquent, neglected, or abused children. Two types of cases are processed by a juvenile court: civil matters, often concerning care of an abandoned or impoverished child, and criminal matters, arising from antisocial , and law enforcement; a graffiti ordinance that required immediate removal of graffiti on public and private property; and a zero tolerance policy zero tolerance policy Substance abuse A stance taken by US government, that any type of drug abuse is punishable by incarceration. See Correctional facility, War on Drugs. on gang activity within the schools. In addition, the coalition developed a working relationship with several gang members on an experimental basis to determine the impact of employment, volunteer service, and extracurricular participation on reducing gang involvement. To build on the strength of the coalition, school administrators developed three major programs. Project Intercept is a partnership involving the Lima City Schools, Juvenile Court, and Children's Services to address erratic attendance. Referrals come from elementary principals about students 10 and under who are not attending school regularly. A minister, employed part time, works with principals, teachers, and parents to improve reduce poor attendance. The Elementary Intervention Program, formed as a partnership between the Lima City Schools and the Family Resource Center of Lima, employs a specialist who works with 11 elementary schools to reduce violent acts. A student accepted into the program undergoes a diagnostic assessment before a treatment plan is developed and services are provided. The Out-of-School Intervention Program, a collaboration between the school district, JTPA JTPA n abbr (US) (= Job Training Partnership Act) → programa gubernamental de formación profesional JTPA n abbr (US) (= Job Training Partnership Act) → , and the Urban Minority Alcohol and Drug Addiction Outreach Program, tries to prevent academic failure and reduce the dropout (1) On magnetic media, a bit that has lost its strength due to a surface defect or recording malfunction. If the bit is in an audio or video file, it might be detected by the error correction circuitry and either corrected or not, but if not, it is often not noticed by the human rate. Students from three middle schools and the high school recommended for expulsion are given the option of attending classes at an off-site location. Students receive 30 hours of conflict management skill development through a local counseling agency. The school system has resisted the rise of gang activity through the work of the communitywide coalition. Gangs have been virtually eliminated and incidence of violence in schools has declined. Systemwide attendance and academic achievement have increased. More importantly, citizens of Lima have accepted the idea that education of the city's children is a responsibility of the total community. Reginald Green, a former superintendent, is assistant professor of educational leadership at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio. Roger Miller is assistant superintendent for personnel services in Lima, Ohio. |
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