Akron schools looking for 'reset' after months of dealing with increased behavioral issues

Akron Public Schools leaders are looking for a "reset" to the school year after a first quarter dealing with a slew of social and behavioral issues with students. 

Superintendent Christine Fowler Mack sent a letter home to families this week outlining the challenges of coming back to school after a year and a half of pandemic stress and learning from home.

In the letter, Fowler Mack also shared new security measures and pledged to raise the bar for expectations placed on students moving forward.

"We know with certainty that the poor choices of a few can impact the learning of many, and can even pose a threat to the safety (of) those who are making good choices," Fowler Mack's letter read. "For this reason, we must work together to remind all students that those who violate our code of conduct face serious consequences including suspension or expulsion, or in some cases, the possibility of criminal charges."

New security measures include increased use of metal detectors at the beginning and randomly throughout the day, more staff present during class changes and further limiting the number of entrances into school buildings. 

Akron is not alone in dealing with a student population that for months on end during the height of the pandemic had little structure baked into a school day. Bedford High School in Cuyahoga County this week is going back to remote learning for the next few days following fights and threats of violence among students.

But Akron has seen an increase in incidents this fall, particularly around fighting, Student Support and Security Director Dan Rambler said. 

One such incident included a fight at Kenmore-Garfield high school last week that involved multiple students and injured a teacher who tried to break it up. The teacher suffered a broken nose, according to a police report.

A gun also was found at the school in a student's backpack the week before. Rambler said that student was charged and referred for expulsion.

Firestone high school also dealt with an incident involving two people who were not students who entered the school and took a picture in a bathroom holding apparent guns and posted it on social media. 

That incident, which sparked significant parent concern in the Firestone community, was more isolated, Rambler said, as the two people in the photo were juveniles but not students at the school. One of the two, along with a student who was involved but not in the photo, has been arrested, Rambler said. The other has a pending warrant but has not been apprehended. 

More common, Rambler said, have been smaller incidents, from students being disruptive in class to having short tempers that lead to arguments and fights. 

"People go from zero to 50 in the quickest blink for the littlest things," Rambler said. 

The district also has battled property damage committed by students in the name of a social media challenge on TikTok. 

More:What we know about TikTok challenges in Akron Public Schools, other area districts

More:Summit schools respond to 'devious licks' challenges on TikTok: What parents need to know

Fowler Mack told a group of parents and community members at a Ward 8 meeting last week that the district, like many others, is feeling the extreme social and emotional challenges people have faced over the last year. For over a year, going to school for students may have meant staying in their pajamas, lying on their bed and barely engaging. Now, the expectations are significantly higher.

The district was fully remote almost exactly one calendar year, from mid-March 2020 to mid-March 2021, but about a third of students stayed remote the end of last school year.

A student in the seventh grade may not have been in school since they were in elementary school.

Fowler Mack said the district's priority was to put all students' safety first, but to first approach students who were acting out with whatever supports they might need. That didn't eliminate consequences, she said, but the district is now stepping up accountability. 

Rambler said that will mean not letting smaller stuff go — like being late to class or roaming the hallways during class — or any of the larger, more dangerous behaviors. 

"We've got to impact the little stuff, which is going to help keep away from the big stuff, too," Rambler said. 

Fowler Mack said at the ward meeting the extra security measures will be temporary, and any permanent changes would come following conversations with the community about how to move forward. 

In her letter, Fowler Mack stood behind practices of restorative justice, which aim to help students work through the root causes of issues that lead to misbehaviors.

"While the pandemic has taken an emotional toll on all of us, it's important to note that its impact is more severe for those who were already the must vulnerable among us," she wrote. "For this reason, I urge empathy in our actions and in our reactions to the behaviors of others." 

Contact education reporter Jennifer Pignolet at jpignolet@thebeaconjournal.com, at 330-996-3216 or on Twitter @JenPignolet.