Letters: Make Phila. schools safe havens

ISSUE | PHILA. SCHOOLS

Safety needed

Allegations that a Benjamin Franklin High School police officer assaulted a student for trying to use the bathroom without a hall pass ("School officer is accused of assault," May 12) are another troubling result of the lack of resources available to the Philadelphia schools that are most in need.

Ben Franklin educates some of the city's most economically disadvantaged students, with nearly a quarter receiving special-education services. Yet glaring shortfalls in state funding mean that the school lacks the resources to improve the climate and serve these children by hiring enough counselors and other crucial support staff.

Making matters worse, school security personnel do not receive sufficient training that prepares them to productively interact with students, especially at-risk youths. School police should not be used as hall monitors, and this episode raises questions about the roles school police play locally, statewide, and nationally.

Pennsylvania needs to invest in the schools with the greatest needs to provide a safe space where students can learn.

|Deborah Gordon Klehr,

executive director, Education Law Center-Pennsylvania, Philadelphia