Citing a “high level of anxiety” among staff and students at Maplewood Middle School, South Orange Maplewood Education Association (SOMEA) leaders Paula Bethea and Hannah Edelman shared concerns with the Board of Education at its last meeting on June 15.
SOMEA is a union representing teachers and staff in the South Orange-Maplewood School District.
Edelman told Board members that immediately after the “Code Red” incident at MMS on June 3, when a student was found to have a loaded weapon, she and Bethea met with teaching staff. Edelman reported that she and Bethea asked administration for on-site support and counseling. However, she said, teachers reported that discipline remains a challenge at MMS.
Specifically, said Edelman, “backpacks are banned throughout the school except for students who have ‘special deals,’ and teachers charge that students “hide backpacks” throughout the school and then “have access” during the day.
In a detailed response emailed to The Village Green, district administrators denied that there are “special deals” regarding students carrying backpacks. In addition, administrators said while they cannot respond to SOMEA’s specific allegations, the district takes disciplinary infractions seriously and responds with appropriate consequences.
“…when there are students who are a danger to themselves or others, we will immediately take all steps necessary to remove them from the school community. Every disciplinary infraction is taken seriously, and the consequences for violating the code of conduct increase in severity if there are multiple infractions.”
MMS administrators said they have instituted “a number of new initiatives this year to address discipline and safety in the school.”
See the district’s entire statement below.
Edelman and Bethea also cited recent thefts of musical instruments at MMS, in which Maplewood Police arrested a man who had trespassed at the school multiple times. “This is problematic,” said Edelman. “If our teachers don’t feel safe, how can our students feel safe?”
There were a total of four thefts of musical instruments at the school (on May 4, 28 and 29 and June 1), all of which took place after school dismissal, said Maplewood Police Sgt. Christopher Black in an email to the Village Green. Police are unsure how the man gained entry to the school. “It appears [the instruments] were his target and the only things taken,” he said.
On the morning of June 2, school administrators reported the thefts, and a description of the man obtained from video footage, to police. That afternoon, the man was seen on school grounds after dismissal. Administrators called police, who found the man and arrested him, Black said.
Here is the district’s full statement:
We appreciate the staff concerns brought to our attention at the June Board of Education meeting. We are committed to working in partnership with our staff to create positive learning and working environments at each of our schools.
A few points of clarification –
- While we are committed to exhausting every avenue to provide the necessary supports to keep students in our schools, when there are students who are a danger to themselves or others, we will immediately take all steps necessary to remove them from the school community. Every disciplinary infraction is taken seriously, and the consequences for violating the code of conduct increase in severity if there are multiple infractions. While we cannot respond to the specific allegations in the statement, we can share that we have instituted a number of new initiatives this year to address discipline and safety in the school, including establishing a Positive Behavior Intervention and Support (PBIS) taskforce made up of teachers, administrators, and parents which meets weekly to assess needs in the school community and to design and implement a comprehensive discipline strategy in the school that includes community building, an incentive system, and articulating clear behavioral expectations and consequences for all students. In addition, we have begun training in and implementation of restorative practices.
- While the June 9th faculty meeting was not specifically about the weapons incident, it was focused on restorative practices and proactive ways to ensure a healthy and safe climate in the school. We discussed the weapons incident many other occasions, including a stand up meeting at the end of the day on Wednesday, an email to all staff that evening, another stand up meeting Thursday morning, and several emails from both the Principal and the Superintendent praising the staff and students for their handling of the incident itself, and offering resources to help with any anxiety or concerns prompted by the incident. Staff were also invited to, and many participated in, both the June 8th Town Hall on School Safety and the June 10th special MMS HSA meeting which dealt with school climate and safety, among other issues.
- There are no “special deals” for students to carry backpacks. Backpacks are only permitted if specifically provided for in a student’s IEP or 504 plan. If a backpack is found unattended in a hallway or other area of the school, it is promptly taken to an administrative office or team leader’s classroom and the owner informed that they can reclaim it at the end of the school day.
- After every security incident or drill, we meet to assess what happened, review feedback, and make any necessary changes. Because the student was already contained, this particular code red was modified by police officers to meet the specific needs of this situation, and to avoid creating additional anxiety with loud internal alarms when there was no imminent danger. We have already identified that staff members who were outside were able to enter the building because of the change in procedure, and have adjusted our protocols to account for this in future lockdown drills.
We are so proud of the way students, staff, law enforcement, families, and the larger community came together to respond that day, to support students and staff as they processed their reactions to the incident, and to work together to address the deeper and systemic issues raised by these events.
