SAFE SCHOOLS ACT: THE PRICE OF SAFETY

There won't be any metal detectors at the doors or security guards roaming the hallways between classes, but Southeast Missouri schools should be safer this year.

A new law designed to promote school safety will require few changes in Southeast Missouri school districts when it takes effect Wednesday.

The Safe Schools Act was designed to make Missouri schools safer places for both teachers and students. The law will impose tougher penalties for students charged with assaults and drug possessions on school property. It also provides funding for alternative schools.

Although the legislation applies to all Missouri districts, large urban districts likely will reap the greatest benefits since they are more apt to have problems with student violence.

"The reality is that we don't have unsafe schools in Perryville or Southeast Missouri," said Dr. Rex Miller, superintendent at the Perryville School District.

Without an abundance of school-related crimes, a majority of the law's components won't apply to every district. However, all districts will have to comply with policy changes for handling student discipline and sharing student records.

The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and Missouri School Boards Association has compiled a packet of suggested policy changes for districts to adopt. The Jackson Board of Education will discuss them at its meeting Tuesday.

As part of the law, discipline records now can travel with a student like academic records have in the past. Records must be sent within seven days of a request.

"I think that all records should go," said Loraime McClinton, a parent. "If the teachers are aware of problems, they will know how to approach a student so it doesn't trigger anything."

McClinton's daughter attends Central Junior High School.

The Cape Girardeau School District routinely keeps a discipline file on students after they reach seventh grade, but the information isn't sent to other districts when academic records are requested, said Superintendent Dr. Dan Tallent. Now similar records must be kept for elementary students as well.

Juvenile and school officials also can share information about criminal records that had once been private.

In smaller districts like those in Southeast Missouri, teachers and principals often know about a student's criminal activities soon after they happen.

"I could see that in the city districts it will make a difference when you have someone with a serious offense or weapons," Tallent said. Cape Girardeau school principals routinely meet with juvenile officers and police officers to discuss potential problems, he said.

Students who have been convicted of a felony or recently were suspended or expelled from a school cannot enroll in another district for 180 days.

"You are always hesitant to send discipline records to another school because you don't want to feel liable for giving them a bad reputation before they start," said Jackson Superintendent Dr. Howard Jones.

But the law makes a legal procedure out of a common practice for most area districts. Students can enroll in an alternative school if they are denied regular enrollment because of a pending suspension in another district.

Under the Safe Schools Act, the Cape Girardeau district applied for a grant to expand its alternative school program but was denied. The district is rewriting the grant to submit again later in the fall. If accepted the grant would expand the program to 80 students in the area instead of just 30 students from the high school, Tallent said.

The district also might apply for a grant to purchase video cameras for school buses. The cameras, which cost about $900 each, would be used on buses with the most student discipline problems. Jackson school buses already have some camera equipment installed.

The Safe Schools Act is very complex and has many provisions, said Brent Ghan, director of public affairs for the Missouri School Boards Association.

MSBA representatives will host regional conferences later this year to discuss the law. The Region 13 conference will be held Sept. 26 at Nell Holcomb School.

"The law is very positive for the schools and will make a difference in improving the environment," Ghan said.

What the Safe Schools Act says:

The Safe Schools Act becomes a Missouri law on Wednesday. It will allow schools and juvenile officials to communicate more about student discipline problems and records.

Alternative Education

-- School districts can submit grants for alternative education programs for disruptive students who aren't suited for traditional classroom settings.

Crimes

-- School administrators are required to report all acts of violence -- from misdemeanors to felonies -- against teachers or school employees.

-- Juvenile officers can now report to schools when a student has committed a crime, but cannot include the name of the victim.

Suspension

-- No school district is allowed to enroll a student who has been suspended or expelled from another district unless the student enrolls in an alternative education program.

-- School districts must place students in in-school suspension with exceptions for dangerous students, alternative education programs or insufficient school resources.

School Records

-- Parents or guardians will be required to provide sworn statements of residency and enrollment eligibility when a student enrolls in a new district. Providing false information is a misdemeanor.

-- All schools must forward copies of a student's academic and discipline records within seven days when that student transfers districts or schools.

-- Schools must establish a written discipline policy for corporal punishments.