Hmmmmm

A middle school student was arrested on felony charges of making a terroristic threat after removing a fire alarm cover.

A high school student was sent to a disciplinary boot camp school after a cigarette butt was found in her car.

Texas public schools have gotten tough on students who step out of line. It's part of the national trend toward zero tolerance ushered in after the deadly shootings at Columbine High School in 1999 and reinforced after 9-11.

A Texas Education Agency report shows that student discipline reports rose 52 percent between the 2000-01 and 2005-06 school years, from 1.7 million to 2.6 million. In the Arlington, Crowley and Fort Worth districts, about 20 percent of all students -- that's one in five -- were removed from the regular academic program for disciplinary reasons.

Of the 2.6 million discipline reports in Texas, the vast majority -- 2 million -- were for nonviolent infractions, such as violating dress code or being late for class.

In the Tomball school district just north of Houston, 11-year-old Casey Harmeier was charged in October with making terroristic threats, a felony, for removing the cover of a fire alarm at Benkendorf Intermediate School.

Casey had bumped into the alarm, loosening its cover. Dared by another student, he removed the cover, said his father, Frank Harmeier. Then the alarm sounded.

Casey was questioned by administrators and sent to the Tomball Police Department, where he was fingerprinted and photographed. He also signed a felony admission of guilt without parental or legal consultation, Harmeier said.

Kimberly McLemore of Slaton, near Lubbock, said she received no academic instruction, only exercising, during the day she spent at a boot camp disciplinary alternative school in nearby Plainview.

McLemore, 16, said she was sent to the program in the fall, after a routine parking lot search at Slaton High School turned up a cigarette butt under the seat of her car.

William McLemore said that his daughter doesn't smoke and that the cigarette butt was probably left behind by a relative who had used the car. Kimberly McLemore was ordered to spend 10 days at the boot camp.

'It's like I was in prison or something,' she said. 'It was horrible.'

After an hourlong bus ride, McLemore was marched into the building with her hands behind her back. Upon entering, an instructor told her to face the wall and not talk, she said.

McLemore said she accidentally replied, 'OK,' and was sent to a room where she was stood with her hands behind her back in front of 'a big poster of a military guy staring at you.'

After misinterpreting a command, she said, she was sent to a small closet where she sat staring at a wall for an hour. The rest of the time was spent exercising, McLemore said.

Her father withdrew her from school and began home-schooling her.

In 2005-06, there were 136,938 reports of Texas students being sent to disciplinary alternative schools.

These programs were created for students who are violent or seriously disruptive, said Leslie Smith, a program specialist with the Texas Education Agency.

But now, even students who talk back to teachers or fail to do their classwork can trigger a paper trail that could land them in a disciplinary alternative school.

Disciplinary Alternative School Programs have little state oversight, and they are not rated by the Texas Education Agency.

State law requires disciplinary alternative schools only to offer a minimum curriculum of English, math, science, history and self-discipline.

'This is not a complete curriculum that will allow a student to accumulate enough course credits to pass to the next grade,' Smith said.

But disciplinary alternative schools can offer more.

In the Birdville school district, for example, teachers teach the core courses. Work for electives such as honors or art classes is sent in from the students' 'home' schools, officials said.

State law requires disciplinary alternative schools to give students 'a fair chance' to complete needed courses and advance to the next grade without making parents pay for summer school or correspondence courses. But schools are not required to announce that these options are available, Smith said.


I understand the need for alternative schools and I agree they should be tough. However, it is still an alternative SCHOOL. There should be adequate education, in the very least, offered.

Also, unfortunately I know this from experience. The goal for these kids in this type school is to earn a "Certificate of Attendance". They are not trying to educate these children to earn a diploma. No, they are covering their butt on the compulsory attendance laws.