Police in schools

 

T hree schools, three police officers. In this area, it's one way to fight the encroachment of problems like drug and alcohol use, gangs, graffiti, theft and weapons in schools.

One Navajo Nation police officer is assigned to each school - Navajo Mountain High, Monument Valley (Utah) High and Whitehorse High - where they watch over student, staff and faculty and deter crime.

Through a partnership with the tribe's Department of Law Enforcement, the San Juan County School District was awarded the Safe Schools and Cops Grant, which is basically school-based policing, different from school security guards.

"They are Navajo Police officers and when they have to, they will respond to a call if they are needed nearby," said Boyd Silversmith, Monument Valley assistant principal. "They're still police officers and there are times when they will call ahead to let us know if they're coming in or if they're responding to a call before making their way to the school."

The presence of a police officer on school grounds was at first intimidating for some students, Silversmith said, and parents feared that it meant the school was crime ridden.

But the idea is not to instill fear but rather confidence, empowerment and a sense of security, he said.

As people became used to the school resource officers, or SROs, trust and even friendship began to develop, he said. Parents have approached officers about talking to their children about troubling behavior in hopes it'll help the kids straighten out before they break a law.

Sometimes the SROs educate adults in the community, too, informing them about the role of the police as well as school policies and laws.

Developing a rapport with student helps the SRO detect social issues that may be simmering under the surface. And trust is important especially to students.

"The SROs know a lot of the students by name," Silversmith said. "These kids appreciate being called by their first names."

Navajo Mountain High sits high on the east side of Navajo Mountain, and enjoys a breathtaking view of the canyon lands leading to Lake Powell. The high school is 10 years old and the SRO, Officer Virgil Smith, knows all 35 students by name since he's been there for two years.

"We're so glad that we got this gentleman here," said Orlo Knight, acting principal and vocational instructor. "His presence in this school has made a difference.

"You never know where he's going to be and that's what I like," Knight said, noting that Smith deliberately varies his routine, yet stays highly visible.

"His presence is always known and seen," Knight said.

With Smith around it helps keep the students from causing any kind of trouble.

Truancy, gangs & drugs

One problem the school faced was truancy. Now, if a student is ditching, Smith will make a home visit to the parent, emphasizing the importance of steady school attendance, and letting them know they could face criminal neglect charges if they ignore their responsibility as parents.

At Monument Valley, Officer Jo Donna Salt, who has been there two and half years, also noted truancy as an issue, but said the first challenge she faced was gang activity.

  "When I first got here there was really no foundation set," she said. "There was a lot of graffiti and students were wearing gang-related attire.

"Once that went down, everything else went down," she said. "Since the issue with gangs is under control, the issue now is truancy. We're just taking one thing at a time."

Language arts instructor Steven Smith recalled an incident in art class where two members of opposing gangs squared off. Violence was prevalent prior to Salt's arrival, he said.

"There has been a significant difference," Smith said. "I don't see gang colors in the hall anymore."

Prior to that, Smith said he had to break up a lot of fights in his five years at Monument Valley. He was even been beaten up while trying to break up a fight, he said.

The presence of gangs isn't visible but that doesn't mean they're entirely gone, Smith said.

"Last year we had some students that were overbearing," he said, "telling people, 'I'm in power,' but I don't see any of that this year."

Connecting to kids

Monument Valley Principal Patricia Seltzer has been at her school for 16 years and has worked with a number of SROs. She believes the success of the initiative really boils down to the personality of the officer.

"(Salt) is really good," Seltzer said. "Her main focus is to prevent before it happens. She talks and builds relationship with the students. She draws the line in the sand and if the students cross that line, she's not afraid to step up."

The number of kids involved in gangs has dropped to 5 percent, down from 10 to 20 percent of the student body before Salt came aboard, she said. Without an SRO, Seltzer believes that number might rise as high as 25 to 30 percent of her students, noting, "The problem with gangs is still active in the community."

Drugs and alcohol are problems in most Navajo communities. With Mexican Hat, Utah, about 30 minutes away, the Navajo Mountain area has access to alcohol and Salt has dealt with students coming to school drunk or hungover.

"I asked them why didn't they just stay home," she said. "The bottom line is that they feel safer in school."

Students will stay after school, even those who don't have anything else to do, Smith said, adding that maybe students do feel safer at the schools than at home.

Whitehorse Principal John Fahey is a "firm believer" in prevention. In his school, gangs are an issue as well as graffiti.

"I've noticed that when we don't have an SRO there is a lack of structure," Fahey said. "It really makes a difference because the number of (problem) referrals goes up when they aren't here. When they are here there are no problems at all."

Nevertheless, the presence of a police officer in a school can send a disturbing message, even if it is not accurate,

"Sometimes people think that because an officer is at the school, they think the school must be that bad to have a police officer there," Silversmith said.

K-9 unit visits

Drug abuse is an issue as well, and officers Smith and Salt collaborate with the local sheriff's department and tribal police to have the K-9 unit make surprise visits to sniff out contraband.

At Navajo Mountain, one student was caught trying to hide a small bag of marijuana under his seat. After the SRO investigated, the student was expelled and his case was sent to juvenile court.

At Monument Valley, the only thing confiscated so far was paraphernalia.

Overall the schools have seen a decrease in gang activity, graffiti, theft of school property, vandalism, and violence.

But when asked if an SRO could have deterred the school shootings at Red Lake, Minn., and Columbine, Colo., the responses were mixed.

"I think the number of casualties would have been less," Salt said, pointing to shootings that have occurred at schools with an SRO. "The outcome would have been different."

As for preventing the tragedies entirely, however, Salt believes that the shooters were looking to make a name for themselves and wanted their "15 minutes of fame."

Smith, on the other hand, said that during his SRO training, he was taught to recognize the problem areas in order to prevent things from happening.

Speaking of Red Lake and Columbine, he said, "I don't think any of that would've happened (at his school)."

The Navajo Times made repeated efforts but was unable to reach Officer Dejuan Tolth, the SRO at Whitehorse High, for this story.

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