Surprise safety check at Bronx Science

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It was a day the surprised students, teachers and administrators at the Bronx High School of Science.

On May 18, students were searched for contraband items as part of the Department of Education’s (DOE) random scanning policy. Because the high school has approximately 3,000 students and there was limited staffing and equipment to conduct the search, there were long lines and two-hour class delays.

Marvin Shelton, president District 10’s Community Education Council, called the move “the largest stop and frisk operation in two years.”

“Students were herded in [the plaza area] and not allowed to leave, which is basically forcible,” he said, adding that the move put students “on lock down before they even got into the building.”

Mr. Shelton, who is also the parent of a 2015 graduate of the school, questioned the legality of the action and how the scan was handled. He called for the DOE to inform parents and students they could be subjected to searches at the start of the school year. Mr. Shelton said he learned of the incident from an email from the Bronx Science Parents’ Association.

The message, which also included a photo, stated in part, “Our kids were subjected to metal detectors sent in by the city… In addition, the NYPD sent multiple police cars and vans to our school corner on Goulden Avenue.”

It added that the searches could happen again at any time and urged parents to lodge a complaint with the mayor, schools chancellor and NYPD.

“We believe our school is completely safe, and that this is baseless and harmful,” the teachers stated.

Students seemed to share the sentiment.

“I feel like it’s just part of protocol and something New York City schools need to go through,” said Trevin Woutersz, a junior. “It’s a hassle and it makes me late to some of my classes. But I think it’s necessary for students to be safe in our city.”

He added there were not enough scanners for the number of students enrolled at the school, resulting in delays. Since it was a new experience for Bronx Science, the 11th grader added, there was no streamlined process to make the search move faster.

Derek Jackson, director of Law Enforcement Division for Local 237, the union that represents school safety officers, stated that the members felt “they were put in a situation where they did not have enough agents to do what they needed to.”

Since officers are not advised in advance of where they will be working, they could not bring the appropriate number of metal detectors or staffing, Mr. Jackson said. He added that students could only be checked from one entry point of the building, which resulted in long lines in the school’s plaza area and class delays.

Mr. Jackson stated that the scan recovered “a box cutter, several pocket knives and one small bag of marijuana.”

In an email to parents after the searches, Bronx Science Principal Jean M. Donahue said, “We are opposed to having random, unannounced scanning in our school. While we hope it will not occur again in the near future, we have no control over the decision to send random scan units.” Her message added that students would not be marked late for the day and tests would be rescheduled for students who were taking an exam during first period. She referred and interview request to the DOE, which did not answer detailed questions. A spokesperson stated, “We are continuing to expand programs that have proven to be effective. We are encouraged by the decrease in suspensions and crime in schools and are looking forward to continuing to expand the implementation of these programs that are helping.”

The message added that between school years 2011-12 and 2014-15, there was a 29 percent decline in all crime in NYC public schools.

Last month, The Daily News reported that the DOE regularly selects schools for random scans and there are fixed scanning stations at 88 school buildings containing nearly 400 city schools.

Bronx High School of Science, Marvin Shelton, Lisa Herndon, District 10, scanning

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