WORCESTER—Increases in violent and suspendable offences highlighted a disciplinary report received by the Worcester School Committee’s Finance, Operations and Governance Subcommittee (FOG) on Nov. 10.
The report, issued at the request of the school committee at-large, showed an increase in most categories. In only the second year of collecting such data, the district reported suspendable offenses increased from 1,861 to 2,267 while non-suspendable incidents increased from 10,396 to 14,155.
While weapons related offenses were notably down from last year, violations such as marijuana and alcohol use, fighting, bullying and disruption of school were among the increases that stood out in the report.
One of the more disturbing numbers was a significant spike in physical assaults on employees, which increased from 92 to 158 over the last year. All categories of non-suspendable offenses, which were broadly defined as cutting class, class disruption, physical contact, inappropriate behavior, and failure to follow rules, all saw increases year-over-year as well.
While some members of FOG sought urgent action, others wanted more data to better understand the true extent of the problem. The increase in “physical contact” alone inspired a call to action by committee member Dianna Biancheria who said the district is dealing with more than just “keep your hands to yourself” and stressed the need for “drastic change.”
“We need, as a system, as a district, to figure out what to do because what we’re doing doesn’t seem to be working,” said Biancheria. “I have some real concerns about this. We are looking at some difficult issues not only across the country but right here in our city.”
Committee member Jermaine Johnson urged caution when seeking major changes in response to the report, noting how the 2,267 suspendable offenses were still a small fraction of the 25,000 students in the district and how some may be repeat offenders. He called for a deeper breakdown of the data to better track specific offenses, saying the broad categories in the report lacked the context needed to guide effective solutions.
“I’m not going to downplay some of the concerns here,” said Johnson, “but I do think we need to take a deeper dive into this, a closer look, and break down the numbers a little bit more.”
Committee members requested more detailed data including the numbers by grade and school, which they hope allows them to further understand any specific problem areas, what schools are doing to reducing these behaviors, and what the rest of the district can learn from those successes.
Another motion was made to receive a report on districtwide expectations for how offenses are coded. Committee members also stressed the need to explore what current interventions are in place as they consider what’s working and what needs to be improved.
In a response received after the meeting, Worcester Public Schools Chief Communications Officer Dan O’Brien said the district is taking steps to address the rise in incidents while reviewing its reporting practices.
“The Worcester Public Schools places the safety and well-being of students and staff as our highest priority. Everyone deserves to learn and work in an environment that is safe, respectful, inclusive, and supportive,” O’Brien said. “We take any incident involving harm to students and staff seriously. In addition to reviewing data entry practices to ensure accuracy and consistency across all schools, WPS is taking several steps to reduce physical incidents from occurring. These steps include increased and consistent training for staff on physical and emotional de-escalation techniques, behavioral supports, and trauma-informed practices. Additionally, WPS will continue to strengthen communication, training and support systems for both staff safety and student well-being.”
O’Brien added that while the data presented to the committee did not disaggregate incidents by grade level, many elementary-level cases involve students with significant special education needs who may exhibit challenging behavior as part of their disability.
“While it is never acceptable for a staff member to be injured or feel unsafe,” he said, “it is important to provide context.”
He also noted that WPS is reviewing and standardizing incident data coding practices to ensure uniformity across all schools.
Jason Bleau, a seasoned reporter from Connecticut’s Quiet Corner, has more than 11 years of news media experience. He has worked as a news anchor for WINY 1350 AM, contributed to Stonebridge Press publications, and covered racing as a Press Box coordinator at Thompson Speedway. Outside journalism, he is a movie enthusiast, freelance film reviewer, banker and solo musician. He can be reached at bleau.jason@yahoo.com
