Rumble in the Bronx
It happened again.
On Friday afternoon, my principal and several parents walked with our students to the bus stop. Waiting for them was a crowd of about 30 students from another school in the neighborhood - who proceeded to attack our children even in the presence of adults! No one was seriously hurt although a couple of our students got punched in the face. My principal had to call 911 because she and the other adults present could not stop the mob of children. It took 25 minutes for 911 to arrive!
It seems that one of our 8th graders, a girl who is very nice but occasionally goofy, may have played a role in instigating this whole crisis by making some comments to a boy from another school. She probably intended them to be funny - she gets pretty hyper after school gets out - but he obviously did not take them that way. That does not begin to justify gathering 30 of your friends and attacking our students, though!
So, we are changing our schedule - again - so that we start and end school a half hour earlier than the other schools in the neighborhood. We released early today and a group of parents and teachers walked the kids to the bus stop again. We've told the children to go straight home; don't stop at the store, any fast food restaurants, the park, the library. Wait until you get to your own neighborhood to do these things.
I'm really disheartened. I had pretty much recovered from my bout of hopelessness only to arrive at school to the news that my children are not safe within just a few blocks of their school.
I'll keep you updated.
On Friday afternoon, my principal and several parents walked with our students to the bus stop. Waiting for them was a crowd of about 30 students from another school in the neighborhood - who proceeded to attack our children even in the presence of adults! No one was seriously hurt although a couple of our students got punched in the face. My principal had to call 911 because she and the other adults present could not stop the mob of children. It took 25 minutes for 911 to arrive!
It seems that one of our 8th graders, a girl who is very nice but occasionally goofy, may have played a role in instigating this whole crisis by making some comments to a boy from another school. She probably intended them to be funny - she gets pretty hyper after school gets out - but he obviously did not take them that way. That does not begin to justify gathering 30 of your friends and attacking our students, though!
So, we are changing our schedule - again - so that we start and end school a half hour earlier than the other schools in the neighborhood. We released early today and a group of parents and teachers walked the kids to the bus stop again. We've told the children to go straight home; don't stop at the store, any fast food restaurants, the park, the library. Wait until you get to your own neighborhood to do these things.
I'm really disheartened. I had pretty much recovered from my bout of hopelessness only to arrive at school to the news that my children are not safe within just a few blocks of their school.
I'll keep you updated.
posted by ms. v. at 5:33 PM
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