The Kansas City Missouri School District says it’s experiencing a drop in student fights, despite several recent incidents that were caught on camera.
Last week a student posted video to YouTube.com that allegedly shows a fight between a teacher and student.On Friday cameras captured a fight between students at Paseo High School.
“I can’t talk specifically about specific cases. The information is under investigation, what occurred on campus, and once we get all the facts together then students will be disciplined according to our student code of conduct,” says Eileen Houston-Stewart a spokeswoman for the school district.
According to the district, incidents are on the decline. From August to November of 2007 the number of incidents reported was 11,309. During the same time period in 2010 the number of reported incidents stands at 4,535.
“Kids are posting and having their cell phones and posting the fights on YouTube and other sources. We’ve seen that there’s been a decrease. We have a zero tolerance policy in the Kansas City Missouri School District,” says Houston-Stewart.
Tyrone Hooker is the father of 16-year old Tazneed Hooker. She was the target of the punches in one of the fights. On Monday he was banned from the school after confronting several students outside.Tyrone says he just wants to make sure his daughter gets to and from school safely .
“I’m fearful of her safety here,” says Tyrone.
Houston-Stewart would not comment on the specific case. “We don’t take lightly telling a parents that they can’t be on school property so something had to transpire in order for that’s to happen if that’s the case,” she says.
Houston-Stewart adds that despite cuts across the district the number of security officers stayed the same.