Peoria District 150 officials are working on a strategy to deal with a rising number of suspensions. Cell phones may be playing a role. School policy states students can have a cell phone with them at school, but it must be off and out of sight. Otherwise the phone is confiscated, taken to the office and a parent has to pick it up. But Director of Student Affairs Bill Salzman says that's not happening throughout the schools.
"In the classrooms I believe it is happening," Salzman told the board. "Is is happening in the hallways and at lunchtime? No. And that's where the problem is."
Salzman says cell phones in the hallways could be much of the reason for the over 200 instances of fights reported in the first nine weeks. Especially, since social networks can be accessed on cell phones. "When they've been allowed to use the cell phones between classes and at lunchtime," says Salzman, "So and so said so and so and such and such."
Board member Debbie Wolfmeyer is concerned. "We have to hold our principals and schools accountable for following those procedures," says Wolfmeyer. "We need to get rid of anything that might say at principal's discretion."
Wolfmeyer also reacts to discussion that the language stating "at principal's discretion" somehow made it into the policy.
"If it's there we need to look at that because it has to be one policy for everyone. We can't have people making it up as they go along."
And Wolfmeyer suggests if the administration has to get even tougher to enforce the policy, so be it.
"If it's that big of a problem, the we have to so something about it. My message to the administration is I expect you to look at this and if we have to start suspending again for it, then we have to start suspending again for the violations."
