EXTRA CONTENT: Group releases annual report on school safety, student behavior

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The Kentucky Center for School Safety released its annual safety report Monday for the 2007-08 academic year finding that almost 94 percent of Kentucky’s students were not offenders.

This is the ninth annual report produced by the KCSS and the data shows an overall reduction of incidents since the data collection began in three areas. Part I offenses that include serious crimes such as homicide, rape and robbery; Part II offenses which include lesser crimes such as forgery, carrying a weapon or driving under the influence; and board violations or violations of regulations set by individual schools such as tobacco use or dress code.

Kentucky’s total public school population for 2007-2008 was 639,719 students. Of that, only 43,392 students or 6.78 percent committed an offense that resulted in an out-of-school suspension or an expulsion.

Even though there were many encouraging signs including a 34.3 percent decrease in drug abuse incidents since the 2003-2004 period, there were several areas that showed an increase in activity.

The number of disciplinary actions for terroristic threatening increased 74.2 percent and 11.9 percent between 2006-2008.  
Additionally, disciplinary actions for alcohol violations increased 27.1 percent between 2006-2008.  The report said in its executive summary, “Despite the general good news regarding school safety in Kentucky, there are still areas where further study and efforts are needed.”

Superintendent, Ed McNeel said the main form of discipline used in the Corbin Independent school system is suspension.
Although the number of suspensions has gone up over the past years from 61 to 86, they reported having zero violations in all other categories, whereas in the past there had been one or two expulsions with services, such as being placed in home or alternative schools, due to violations.

Despite the reported increase in alcohol violations between 2006-2008, McNeel said this has not been a rising problem related to school or school activities at Corbin.

“We have not had a major issue with that, most of that is going on outside the school, I know that has been an issue for sometime,” McNeel said.

McNeel said he thinks the increase of terroristic threatening in Kentucky schools is due to the fact that people have to take things like that more seriously now.

“ It’s come to the point that if a student does something that threatens someone, you have to report it, even if you aren’t sure if they are serious,” McNeel said.

Almost four percent of students at Corbin schools had some sort in infraction during the 2007-08 up just a little from three percent in 2005-2006.

Laurel county schools had eight percent of students, up from four percent in 2005-2006 and showed 12 level II infractions after two previous years without any level I or level II infractions.

Knox county showed 18 percent of students committing some sort of infraction down from 22 percent in 2005-2006 with no level I or level II infractions.

Whitley county had a slight rise from nine percent of students in 2005-2006 to ten percent in 2007-2008. They also had no level I or level II infractions on the report.

And finally, Williamsburg Independent showed a two-percent drop with nine percent of student committing infractions in 2005-2006 to seven percent in 2007-2008. Williamsburg had only one incident of a level I infraction from the past academic year.