This morning's Ithaca Journal reports on the latest school violence data. Although the lead article makes a point that New York's data makes it look extremely violent because of reporting standards, an online article on discrepancies within the Ithaca school district makes it clear that the differences between Boynton and DeWitt middle schools reflect actual differences in student behavior. (DeWitt, where most Dryden residents in the Ithaca schools go, had much more violence than Boynton.)
More data is in the print edition, and complete data is available from the state, but here's an excerpt showing schools Dryden residents are likely to attend, plus Boynton Middle School for a comparison with DeWitt.
| School | Enrollment | Sex offense (no weapons) | Serious assault (no weapons) | Minor assault (no weapons) | Intimidation, bullying (no weapons) | Weapons possession | Drug use, sale, possession |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dryden Elementary | 587 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Cassavant Elementary | 93 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Freeville Elementary | 103 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Dryden Middle | 475 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 33 | 1 | 0 |
| Caroline Elementary | 320 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 0 |
| Boynton Middle | 645 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| DeWitt Middle | 563 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 76 | 4 | 0 |
| George Junior | 164 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 0 | 0 |
| Dryden High | 598 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 4 |
| Ithaca High | 1634 | 1 | 3 | 10 | 27 | 3 | 15 |
The County Legislature voted to extend its participation in the Recreation Partnership for five more years.
The Journal's editorial looks at the challenges of reaching everyone with health care in Tompkins County.
Posted by simon at August 22, 2007 12:17 PM in crime , schools (Dryden) , schools (Ithaca) , schools (other)
Data on school violence are immediately suspect, because actions are reported in a variety of ways, even within a single district. There is no standard. Many schools prefer to keep things under wraps and deal with it themselves, while others report the slightest incident. Some teachers handle things in the classroom; others refer every slighest infraction to the principal.