Posted 4/4/01 Knives, marijuana leading causes for expulsion from North Branch schools By Jason Sileo The majority of students who have been expelled from the North Branch schools in the past two years have been middle schoolers ó and theyíve been kicked out for carrying knives or marijuana, or both. This is the word from North Branch School Superintendent Dr. Robert Stepaniak. The issue of expulsions came to light in recent school board talks because, Stepaniak said, there is room for subjective thinking among school officials when expulsions are made. Seven expulsions have been made in the past two school years, five of which were a result of weapons policy violations (i.e. knives). Two students were expelled for possession of marijuana, and one was expelled for verbal abuse and assaulting a staff member. Those numbers donít quite add up because one student had both marijuana and a knife when he or she was expelled from the high school last November. ìYou can see that thereís a trend,î Stepaniak said. ìThereís marijuana, usually, or thereís a knife. Most of the issues related to expulsions are related to our weapons policy and drug policy.î Expulsions have ranged anywhere from a month to a full year in duration ó further evidence of the subjective nature in doling out punishment for zero tolerance policy violations, the superintendent said. While these incidents are serious enough to warrant expulsion proceedings, Stepaniak said he thinks the situation is fairly normal for a district the size of North Branch. ìI donít have any comparative data in terms of what is happening in other school districts, but I really donít think itís unusual for a school district our size,î he said. ìWe are allowed to expel for up to one full year, but we donít always do that,î Stepaniak said. ìWe have a zero tolerance policy, which means we will take action if thereís a weapons violation. We also practice zero tolerance when it comes to drugs, but the length of the expulsion is, really, situational.î While a second grader who brings a paring knife with him to school, for the purposes of peeling an apple, may find himself in some genuine hot water, he or she certainly would not warrant a year-long expulsion, Stepaniak explained. ìWe donít want to do that,î he said of an overblown punishment for what really is no more than a careless mistake. ìWe try to take a closer look at the situation: how the parents respond, how the student responds... those go into the mix.î ìHowever, if a studentís actions are deemed dangerous ó if they brandish the knife for example ó all of a sudden it goes up,î Stepaniak said, referring to the length of a subsequent expulsion. If a student admits to a teacher that he has a pocket knife with him at school, ìWell, we have to do something, but weíre not going to expel for a full year,î the superintendent said. ìWe try to inject what we think is some common sense into the whole situation, while at the same time weíre working hard to get the message across to kids that weíre not going to play games.î No firearms found as of yet As mentioned, knives and marijuana in school might hardly qualify as serious issues when compared to school shootings such as the recent incidents in San Diego, or the Columbine tragedy. ìKnock on wood: we have not had firearms or look-alike guns here,î Stepaniak said. The whole situation has changed since he attended school, he said, when students wore fold-up Buck knives on their hip and gave demonstration speeches on how to clean or break down a shotgun. You just canít do those things anymore. ìThe situation has changed, and it has changed for all schools,î he said. Maturity an issue But why are most of the expulsions in the district at the middle school level? ìItís just the nature of the beast,î Stepaniak said. ìThose kids are growing up, theyíre old enough to get into trouble but theyíre not smart enough... thatís just the way middle school students are. Theyíre going through that time of life where theyíre trying to understand the parameters that society has put in place.î Some kids stand out to their peers, staffers and administrators as potential troublemakers, he said. ìYou can see traits in kids that you know are going to be lifelong problems,î Stepaniak said. ìThose are the kids you worry about ó who are capable of causing violence.î School violence All the attention given to school violence these days does provide a heightened awareness among students, and many students may now be more willing to go to a teacher or other adult if they have a concern for their or someone elseís safety. Stepaniak said girls, generally speaking, are more willing to throw up the red flag if they suspect trouble is brewing. ìThey are less likely to look the other way,î he said. ìIf someone is being picked on or something, girls will express their opposition to it more readily than boys ó though not always.î ìI do think there are a number of people who donít want any kind of violence and theyíre willing to very quickly tell us whatís going on,î he said. ìThatís really the best way of controlling our environment ó to have the kids agree on what we want. There will always be those who reject what the majority want, but we still think the vast majority of kids are good kids and donít want violence in their schools.î But school officials are never through worrying about school violence on the home front or abroad, he said. Incidents such as Columbine: ìWe worry that they will trigger something in a mentally ill student who we havenít picked up on,î Stepaniak said. ìThatís the fear of every school in this country: that thereís someone in our school who is mentally ill who we donít know about... who may see whatís happening (on TV, for example) and theyíll think they can do it. ìWe just donít criticize those other schools because Iím sure theyíre just as shocked as we would be if somebody pulled a gun in school and started shooting.î ©Post Review